


Bathtubs, Bickering and Brandy!

by Constantine_You_Owe_Me



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Bickering, Hurt/Comfort, Injured Character, M/M, Merman Garrett, Shameless Smut, Trans Aro, Trans Male Character, merman au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-29
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:08:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 46,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24437974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Constantine_You_Owe_Me/pseuds/Constantine_You_Owe_Me
Summary: PROMPT REQUEST:Garrett’s a merman who gets saved by Aro who found him too far on the beach to flop back to the sea. For the time being, he keeps the fish dude in the bath-tub since going back to the sea would be a bit too dangerous. Not to mention that it was pirate territory as well and much too dangerous for any merfolk to swim into.
Relationships: Aro/Garrett (Twilight)
Comments: 69
Kudos: 33





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was a prompt request from over on my tumblr that got a bit out of hand and is now going to be a multichapter fic. How many chapters? We just don't know yet. 
> 
> Please enjoy! 
> 
> You can request a prompt over on my tumblr:
> 
> fromeroicawithlove
> 
> Thanks :)

A storm had ravaged the coastline for the best part of 4 days, all ships had docked and the port town that was normally a bustling hub for merchants and visitors lay near empty and silent. 

The golden sands of the coast side ran for miles, from the port town, past villages, fields of wheat and then the ancient forests met the sea and no roads travelled through. Towering sentinels growing ever closer to the sealine all the while stretching out far off into the distance. A blanket of green across the land. 

Now those golden sands were littered with driftwood and branches brought up from the coastal forest, and scavengers would likely be out in force once the driving rains and galeforce winds had settled to something less fatal. 

Aro lived alone on the edge of the port town, between the villages, on a large plot of land bought by his family centuries ago. One hundred acres of grassland, woodland and a fishing pond- the large and ominous mansion settled at the edge of it all its imperious gaze watching silently over the lands in its possession. It was all very impressive to a degree but ultimately it wasn’t used for anything and was more a status symbol than anything else. 

The windows had been shuttered for days and Aro was starting to forget what daylight looked like, his only company night and day was the howling of the wind smashing against the shutters, the rumbling thunder growing into a wrathful roar from the bruise purple skies above. 

A morning came when the weather seemed calm and Aro shrugged on his black wool coat, a pair of leather gloves shoved into the pocket, and made his way out into the dull and wet world. 

There was no one out so early in the morning and relishing the bracing breeze Aro made his way down to the beach. He would be the lone figure breaking the grey line of a restless ocean clad in black looking out at a horizon that bled sea to sky. 

At first, he could scarcely distinguish between driftwood and seaweed brought up upon the sand from the storm, but he knew something wasn’t quite right, something inside him pushed the feeling of alarm to the forefront of his mind before his eyes could sort out the trigger. 

What he found himself looking at suddenly was a man lying in the sand half covered in an old fishing net that seemed tangled around his arms neck. The did not appear to be moving and Aro took a step back realising he shared this spot with a corpse. 

It was in his best interests to just leave the poor soul to be found by another. What business did Aro have going to investigate the man lying in the sand? Cause of death? Likely the fishing net strangled the life from him and that was that. 

An awful way to go and surely someone would be missing their husband, brother, son but that was not for Aro to dwell on, he’d never seen him before in his life.

It was at that moment he realised that his feet, unbidden, had led him closer to the corpse and he had to consciously stop himself from crouching down to investigate further but the gleam of scales caught his eye and everything began to make less sense. 

It couldn’t be that he had stumbled upon someone half-eaten by a giant fish… had he? 

_ Why would you think something so ridiculous? _ Aro mocked himself as he crouched down to get a better look, his long coat trailing in the sand as he did so. 

The creature stirred and Aro fell backwards into the wet sand, his voice caught in his throat, the scream half-formed but never fully realised and eyes wide in surprise as an unsettlingly pale outstretched hand curled into a loose fist and a groan slithered from between dried cracked lips. 

He’s alive? Aro could barely form the thought before he was scrambling to his feet and grabbing the outstretched hand. When he tugged there was no yield and Aro cursed quietly under his breath. 

Kneeling down in the sand he scanned the net and found it trapped under a rock, something far too heavy for him to move on his own. A knife would have come in handy right then but Aro had never been prepared for such things and men of his reputation did not carry knives. 

Searching around Aro finds a jagged piece of broken glass, pulling on his gloves, he gingerly picks up the shard and turns it to the net slicing through the weaker threads as quickly as he could. 

The net begins to fall away leaving deep cuts and blooming bruises over the man’s skin where it had tightened in an obvious struggle to free himself. As though the net had constricted his lungs the more they came away the more life seemed to breathe back into the man on the sand. 

“Oh, you had better appreciate this when you’re conscious.” The mumbled words fell on deaf ears as Aro continued to complain as he brushes away debris from the stranger’s naked torso. 

Shoving aside a particularly large piece of wood Aro stilled his movements almost instantly. Again he stared down at something that did not make sense and he felt something inside him stutter as familiarity bled into unknown and it felt wrong. 

Scales glinted in the weak light slick as an oil spill but the iridescent green coiled in the sand slid up over what should have been thighs and hips tapering off to reveal a smooth back littered with bruises. 

He knew he was not strong enough to lift the man… fish… and whatever he was it did not take a professional to know they were weak and in trouble. But deep down Aro knew he had to do something if he did not help him scavengers or even pirates would find him and who knew what horrors he would endure. 

Checking to ensure he was still alone Aro scouted the beach fretfully looking for anything that might aid him in carrying the wounded creature back to his home and to safety. 

Thankfully, he was able to find an old torn sail from a ship that had long seen its end of days dashed upon the rocks that lay beyond the shallows. Those that did not navigate the waters often did not stand a chance against them. 

It was a challenge to clear away the broken wood and tangled old fishing nets away enough to lay the sail flat but Aro did it with panicked haste and gently as he could, he rolled the half-conscious creature over onto the stained pale fabric. 

If Aro had believed in any Gods he would thank them for he was met with no one as he dragged his find home, it was an arduous task to carry something far bigger than he from the beach to his door. The few minutes it took him to get to the beach was a long distant dream upon his return home. 

In the darkened hallway Aro leaned against the door to catch his breath and with shaking hands from the exertion clawed at his coat buttons to remove it lest he immolates himself within it. 

He tore the top few buttons of his shirt open and tossed his coat aside to deal with later. His most pressing matter still lay prone on the hallway floor seeping seawater over the dark floor and pervading the air with the scent of the tide. 

Taking a cautious step closer Aro could see the creature’s chest rising and falling slowly, their lashes fluttering for a moment but nothing more. If they were internally injured he would be of no use to them and knew no one he trusted enough to help. 

“But you must need to be in water…” Aro trailed off and looked up despairingly at the stairs before him. Three sets of ornately designed stairs cases led up to the floor housing the bathroom with a bath big enough for whatever it was on the hallway floor. 

A man? 

A fish? 

With a scoff, Aro considered he could be the mystical fantasy creature known as merfolk but he was not in a fit state to comprehend such a thought fully at that moment in time. 

A mammoth task lay before him and he considered for a second just why he was doing this all in the first place? 

Throughout the years he had spurned enough lovers to be gifted with the title of heartless countless times. There were no close confidants to speak of, save for the perhaps his doctor but Carlisle would only ever appear on business. 

The business being Aro’s health but visits were scarce at the moment and he felt himself quite above feigning illness for company. Books would do and in a pinch, he could always respond to correspondence from his family but that was something he truly loathed to do unless absolutely necessary. 

So why did he insist on aiding a creature he had no clue could even understand him, appreciate or even thank him? It truly did puzzle him but the idea of leaving him in the sand at the mercy of scavengers handing off to some circus left a chill spiking down his spine.

It was better not to think of it and just carry on as he was. 

Dragging a half man half fish up three flights of stairs had him cursing up a storm under his breath enough that his dear mother would clutch her pearls in disbelief had she been there to hear him. 

The bath was filled and the creature dispatched into the marble masterpiece that was the clawfoot tub. Far bigger than what was necessary to the point that even Aro found the opulence of it garish. 

However, it was perfect for housing  _ him _ and Aro left the creature languishing while he wandered off to compose himself and maybe pour himself a shot of something strong. Lord knows he needed it to soothe his aches, after all, Aro would openly admit he had never done a hard days work in his life. 

Pampered, preened and preposterously rich meant he hadn’t had to do much of anything growing up. Always with his nose in a book meant no one had bothered him as he was spending time doing something everyone agreed was worthwhile… or so they thought. 

The truth of it was that Aro found many subjects interesting and didn’t feel as though it was fair for him to pick just one to dedicate his life to so, in the end, he didn’t select a single one and carried on as he always had. 

It left him with nothing to show for it other than excellent general knowledge but that didn’t really get him very far and so with great displeasure he followed his father into accounting which turned out better than expected seeing as he was able to do this from the comfort of his own home most days. 

When his father retired he was gifted a list of loyal and very well to do clients that were happy to have the family business continue without a hitch. It was how he first met the Cullen family and Carlise. 

Could he trust Carlisle with this aquatic secret floating between life and death in a bathroom upstairs? 

Aro had just touched the glass of his drink to his lips when he heard violent splashing above him. Rather than waste the drink he downed it in one before dashing up the stairs, with difficulty, to the door of the bathroom.

The splashing ceased when the creature found he was not alone and for a moment they stared at one another silently. The creature had the face of a handsome man Aro supposed, and a wavy mop of brunet hair and pale skin gave him the look of a person that he could have passed on the street. 

Genuinely there was nothing spectacular about him aside from the great leviathan like tail hanging over the edge of the bath gleaming under brighter lights showing off the myriad of colours under the initial green. 

“Can you speak?” Aro winced at how timid his voice sounded when he spoke but the emotion was lost almost instantly when the creature scoffed at him. 

“Of course the human would believe I was mute.” 

Oh, how pleasant, a sassy creature from the deep comes to make his life a living nightmare. 

“I found you on the beach tangled in a fishing net, I think you might nearly have died if you were not cut loose.” Pushing aside the desperate need to snap back at him, Aro spoke softly again and stepped further inside the bathroom. When the creature said nothing Aro pushed for more information about him by offering more of his own. 

“This is my home, I brought you here because I feared you were injured. Do you have a name?” 

For a moment he believed they would not speak again as ire had clouded their eyes to something dark and dangerous but he seemed to deem it necessary to reveal something about himself, and when he spoke his voice rasped all the while a webbed hand massaged his throat where the ropes had bitten in. 

“Garrett, and… thank you, I suppose.”

“Garrett?” It didn’t sound all that grand a name for a fantastical creature dragged from the murky depths of the sea.

“Did you want something more in line with your fantasies?” The creature leaned over the edge of the bath, displaying more strength than Aro believed he should be capable of, a slow smirk spread over his lips revealing two rows of jagged teeth and a pointed tongue that ran along the cruel edge of the upper row of teeth almost teasingly. 

“Ah, I see. Did you want the dashing merman to pledge his heart to you, reveal a name gifted from the stars above that entwines with yours?” Another scoff before he flopped back onto his back in the large tub. Water splashed up the sides and spilt on to the floor but he paid it no mind as he continued to speak. 

“I know you humans are all alike with all that hot blood running in your veins. Can scarcely speak without the need to fuck or fight bleeding into every word.” 

It was apparent this  _ merman, _ as he referred to himself, was not thankful to be rescued and absolutely saw humans as beneath him and while Aro found him so very infuriating already, he also could not help but feel intrigued and, somewhat, mortified at the how his pulse quickened at the way Garrett spoke to him. 

Ignorance was bliss but it was also at his mercy in that bathtub should Aro ever have such dark inclinations. 

“I feel that all the fantasies you spout may be yours and yours alone,  _ Garrett _ .” He forced the merman’s name out between gritted teeth but relished in the sight of him faltering for a split second, eyes widening as he glances over to his rescuer. 

“Fear not, I am not interested in keeping you here as a live experiment. Forgive me but I wished only to ensure you were well and uninjured before releasing you. Should I have left you for the pirates and scavengers instead?” What a falsely sweet tone he used but it was clear Garrett understood it as something more of a warning because he remained silent for some time before lifting his arm from the water to show Aro a wound red and angry. 

“I think there might be something stuck in it but I can’t see anything.” His admission was quiet. Aro decided not to gloat and instead show he could be trusted and so without a word he vanished from the bathroom and returned with a first aid kit amongst other things. 

“This will hurt so you have to promise me that you will not lash out because you know I am trying to help you, yes?” Aro’s words were responded to with a short nod and nothing more. A sense of calm had fallen over both of them now that communication had been so easily established. 

Thankful that he was not battling with words being lost in translation, Aro got to work on cleaning the wound though he withdrew his hand sharply at the how cold Garrett’s skin was to the touch.

“Of course you’d be cold, I suppose…” It was said more under his breath than as a statement to the creature. However, Garrett had heard and let out a rumbling rasping laugh, the derisive tone not missed by Aro who huffed and moved away from the merman momentarily to glare at him. 

“Don’t pretend to know anything about my kind.” Not a warning but Aro took it as one and dropped the subject not wishing to start a full-scale argument with something that could probably tear him to pieces without much effort. 

After all, he could not avoid glancing at the claws that curved ever so slightly at the end of each finger of the webbed hand that rested so close to his stomach as he inspected the wound. 

They spent a long moment in silence as Aro fished out a good amount of splintered wood from the wound with tweezers. Throughout that silence, many questions came to the forefront of his mind but died on his tongue as he reminded himself that questions were strictly off the table… for now. 

Raising the man’s ire was not his top priority as he rather liked his skin unmarred. Again he took the time to reacquaint himself with the claws that grazed the fabric of his shirt and he felt a flush crawl over his skin. 

He was a toy at that moment, being so close and so vulnerable, and he allowed himself to be played with. The danger of it all far alluring in a way Aro had never experienced before and how addicting he knew it could become. 

“All done,” Aro moved to his feet faster than he liked though purchase was difficult on the wet tiled floor and his boots skidded nearly throwing him off balance. A webbed hand shot out to steady him and Aro had to suppress a flinch born from fear at the sight of the claws extended out and curling around his wrist. 

"Careful now. You might hurt yourself in a bid to get away from me." The hand released Aro's wrist and the man took a measured and slow step back. The flush that had snaked it's way up his throat to his cheeks was now fully aflame across his face but Aro stood tall and met Garrett's gaze when he spoke. 

"We've no reason to trust each other but I assure you there are no ulterior motives for my having brought you here. 

You were in peril, injured and on the brink of death, I think. There was no reason to leave you to die and if you did die under my care at least you would not have been alone. 

I would understand should you lash out at me but do not think me a willing target just because I understand your fears of being here trapped and far from your own kind." It gave Garrett something to think about because he did not respond and he was the first to break eye contact busying himself with taking in the room around him for the first time apparently. 

Taking this as a dismissal Aro turned and left without another word and all but collapsed into bed still fully clothed his shirt stained with the blue blood of his would-be patient. 

It was dark when Aro woke again, he had slept the day away. He was greeted by the sound of a raging storm battering at the shutters again. With a groan, he rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling for a moment as he tried to recall the day’s events that flooded his memory as though rushing water breaking through the walls of a dam. 

There was a creature living in his bathroom at that very moment!

Never had he moved so quickly before his feet still clad in boots from earlier that day slammed hard against the wooden floor as Aro threw himself into a standing position and hurried from his bedroom to the now darkened bathroom. 

A thought crossed his mind but as he entered the bathroom he found himself, somewhat, disappointed and a sigh escaped his lips. It was answered by the sound of water sloshing around and an unimpressed groan. 

“Hm, your misery is so musical.” A voice in the dark called out teasingly and Aro bit back a retort letting his shoulders droop as he did so. “Did you think that I would, perhaps, glow in the dark?”

How had he known? 

“No bioluminescence?” 

“No, no bioluminescence.” The sound of a smile in Garrett’s tone was surprisingly nice when not tinged with mocking. “Far too dangerous to glow in the dark when you live in the deep and are comprised entirely of delicious meat and bone.” 

“I suppose,” Aro replied despondently and he reached up to flick the lights on only to find the whole place was without power.  _ Wonderful _ . “Oh, lovely. No light.” There would be candles somewhere he assumed but where was beyond him for the moment. Digging them out in the dark would be a pain and it was probably easier to just go back to bed until morning. 

“Humans really do rely on something they can scarcely control to see.” 

“There’s no need to be rude about it.” 

“I’m not rude, you’re the one who still hasn’t introduced himself.” 

Of course, he had- no, no he had not. From the moment they met on the beach right up until that very second Aro had been the one without manners and Garrett had known it. Silently lorded over him until he could bring it up and make himself out to be superior. 

“You’re blushing again. Did I embarrass you?” Well, at least he now knew Garrett could see in the dark but it didn’t make him feel any better to know he was right. “You’re very pink.” 

Yes, he had embarrassed him but Aro wasn’t going to let the merman rub him the wrong way just because he caught him off guard. 

With that thought in mind, Aro remained lingering by the door still dishevelled from sleep wondering what was safe to ask the merman because it seemed Garrett was intent on crossing a line he had invented himself but had failed to include explaining to Aro just where that line began. 

“How long will you keep me here?” The sudden change in the subject of conversation threw Aro slightly but he refused to be flustered by Garrett again and instead just shook his head. 

“I don’t know. Until I know you’re well enough to leave? Until it is safe enough to take you back out to the beach?” It was a question mark hanging in the air between them and neither really knew the answer to Garrett’s question but the merman didn’t seem to mind because he sighed in response no words forthcoming. 

After a moment another sigh was heaved into the air by the merman before eventually, he spoke. 

“Well, I will just wait here until you have an answer.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro finds a better place to house his fish and things get extremely out of hand fast.

It couldn’t have been comfortable laying curled up in the bathtub of a strange human’s home with a myriad of unknown injuries plaguing him. The cold unyielding porcelain probably a far cry from his home comforts… whatever they had been. 

Sitting back from the box he had been rummaging in, Aro felt a pang of guilt for keeping Garrett there against his will. Would it not have been easier to have dragged him back into the sea?

Too late thinking about that now. _Far too late,_ Aro thought as he heard something crash outside, another tree likely uprooted but he wasn’t going to risk opening the shutters just to see. 

In all honesty, Garrett hadn’t exactly begged to be set free. He had only asked how long he would be kept, was that the same as asking if he was a prisoner? 

It took everything in him not to kick the box in front of him. There had been no candles in there and so the search would continue, the only thing was, he now had another issue to deal with. 

What did a merman eat? 

Fish. Probably. 

Though, it wasn’t safe to assume and asking questions about merfolk was still off the table as far as he was aware. It was down to Garrett to tell him what he wanted on his own terms and if he didn’t they would cross that bridge when they got to it. 

Eventually, candles were discovered and Aro set about placing a few on his dresser and lighting them. They gave off a low orange glow but it was enough for him to be able to see the rumpled bed sheets and the fresh clean shirt he had pulled hastily from the dresser earlier in the pitch black. 

Taking this chance to change Aro did so slowly allowing himself time to reflect on his situation, because as much as Garrett’s existence fascinated him the merman was awful and their personalities seemed to clash horribly. 

He did, of course, take into account that the merman was likely uncomfortable and scared. Still, he believed he had put across quite well that he had no intention of hurting him but maybe he needed more time. 

Not even a full day had passed since Aro had brought him home and the tension would not dissipate because of a bandaged up arm. 

A not so unpleasant shiver slithered down his spine when he recalled the claws. It was pushed to the back of his mind when the wind slammed into the shutters on the windows and they rattled wildly on their hinges. 

The storm was going to kill someone. 

Nearly had already. 

_You have to go back in there and talk to him again, Aro. You cannot avoid him just because he is unpleasant to you._ It wasn’t much of a pep talk but it did the trick and he grabbed a set of candles and some matches from the dresser and wandered back down the hall to the bathroom. 

As he entered the room Aro busied himself with lighting a candle so that he did not search for Garrett in the dark. He knew the merman was looking at him as soon as he had walked in and it gave him fearful chills. 

A predator in the dark ever watching.

“I don’t need those.” Garrett’s sleep rough voice drifted through the room. When Aro looked up to the direction the voice came from his heart stopped in his chest when glowing eyes blinked back in the orange black gloom. 

After a few seconds of silence, Garrett was the one to speak.

“You’re scared of me, aren’t you?” No gloating just the pitch of surprise and the splashing of water as he moved to rearrange himself. The sound of claws scraping against porcelain had the hair on the back of Aro’s neck stand on end and he stuttered out something unintelligible as he took a step backwards, the flame of the candle flickering wildly as he did so. 

When his back met with the doorframe he seemed to come back to himself and he blew out the candle hoping that the glow in the merman’s eyes would die with the light.

Thankfully, it did. 

“Yes, I am.” The words tumbled from his lips without hesitation once the dark had enveloped him and he was no longer staring into the eyes of something he was beginning to understand less and less. “Why wouldn’t I be?” 

“Then was it not foolish of you to bring me here out of the kindness of your heart?”

“Yes, but never in my life have I been kind before without being sure that I would receive something in return for the act.” 

“And so, what made you change your ways for me?” 

This was the longest conversation they’d had where insults were not traded and no snide remarks dissolved the shaking foundations of trust. 

“I didn’t want you to die alone, that is all.” He tried to play it off as though he’d been moved to action by an ulterior motive. The truth was that he had no idea why he had helped Garrett and he really hoped he wouldn’t be asked again because he would still have no answer. 

“Noble.” But Aro couldn’t tell if he was being serious or not. It didn’t matter because Aro knew there was nothing noble about his decision to move the man from the beach- he did not trust himself not to have an ulterior motive. 

“Never noble.” 

“All right then.” 

More splashing and Aro heard the squeak of a tap being turned followed by running water. Was this the end of the conversation? 

Maybe it was better for them not to have any sort of attachments because as soon as the storm had passed Garrett would be released and they would not see one another again. BUt the opportunity to learn about his kind was within his reach but sadly he had an unwilling subject refusing to play teacher. 

“Are you in any pain?” The only response was the running water that echoed against the tiled walls around them occasionally drowned out by wild winds shaking the windows in their frames. 

“Until I can properly stretch out I don’t know.” That was always going to be a problem, or at least, always in the sense of the short time they would know one another. Hadn’t Aro thought the same thing not moments earlier while rooting around looking for candles? 

The only place he could think to put him was the lake or the pool, the pool that he had completely forgotten about until that very moment. It would likely need to have the water changed so it was not chlorinated but draining it and refilling it wouldn’t be all that arduous a task, just time consuming. 

But it was better than the bath. 

“Let me see what I can do.” His parting words sounded empty even to his own ears, the promising tone in them lacked conviction. 

Aro relit the candles still clenched in his hands and moved down the hall towards the stairs. All three flights silently mocked as he descended, the very flights he had struggled to drag Garrett up when he could easily have taken him to the pool. Embarrassing to have only just remembered the disused area of the house but in his defense the chlorine could have hurt Garrett more. 

To his surprise the pool was already empty, he did not recall ever requesting it be done or even doing it himself but it did mean things would be done faster than he originally anticipated and that was really all that mattered. 

It would seem sparse and uncomfortable still for it to be so empty, even Aro knew that fish, even if they were half human, needed reeds and plants, perhaps even sand on the bottom to feel more at home and even safe. 

_You’re not building an aquarium for a goldfish, and he isn’t going to be here long enough to appreciate any effort you put in._ The mental berating was enough to straighten his jumbled thoughts, this was a short term situation with a short term solution. 

When Aro returned to the bathroom the running water had stopped and the room was quiet. At first ,he believed Garrett was asleep but the candle caught that glowing gaze again and it was staring right at him just as it had been the first time. 

“I’ve found a better place for you to stay, however, the logistics of getting you there… well, you were unconscious and dragged up three flights of stairs in an old ripped ship’s sail when you first came here. 

Now that you are fully conscious I don’t think it would go down as smoothly.” Getting Garrett down the stairs was only difficult because between bruising a body and bruising an ego, the ego was the most reprehensible act of the two. 

Whose ego Aro wasn’t sure. 

“If there is no other way…” Glowing eyes darted to the discarded sail in a pile by the bath, it was still soaking wet but dragging it across wooden floors would be easier and it was the only option they had. 

There was no way Aro could lift the merman, one, he was a lot heavier than a regular man and two, Aro could scarcely lift himself he was not exactly strength personified. Plus he would really rather ensure those dangerous claws and the razor lined mouth were far away from him. 

“Well, if I spread the sail onto the floor can you lift yourself out of the bath?” 

The entire thing was an ordeal Aro would gladly like to wipe from his memory as soon as possible. A bottle of good brandy was in the study on the lower ground floor and he was reminded as they passed the doorway heading toward the pool. 

The merman was unceremoniously rolled into the pool that was not quite filled enough but was much better for him to stretch out in. 

It was mesmerising to watch Garrett lazily unfurl in the water more a great serpent than a fish but there was a flinch here and there as he snaked through the water at the deeper end of the pool. Aro wandered around the edge a few steps behind horrified at just how large and ominous he looked gliding in the water. 

A strange and dark beast of the waters, the tail much longer and it coiled so easily as Garrett twisted and turned to stretch out his aching body. The thin almost transparent frill like fins curled like ribbons and it was almost alluring in a way and Aro paused a moment simply to watch.

When Garrett broke the surface of the water he was much closer than Aro had initially thought and he took a step back as Garrett pulled himself up and leaned against the edge of the pool. A wicked grin split his face and those dagger sharp teeth were displayed in a smile that Aro could never find trust in. 

“Still scared?” His voice echoed in the cavernous room and Aro returned the grin with a baleful stare and said nothing to refute him or prove him right, either way, Garrett would continue to make his own assumptions and would leave no room for argument on the matter. 

It was better to allow him this win than risk another argument but something inside Aro couldn’t let it go and he knelt down one knee tantalisingly close, enough that the menacing claws of the merman just grazed the fabric. 

“You’ve given me no reason not to be but so far you’ve been nothing but mouthy. I don’t think you have the steel to do it.” Everything happened so fast that Aro scarcely found the time to breath before a clawed hand shot forward and grabbed the front of his shirt. 

There was no time to struggle as he was dragged over the edge of the pool and under the surface. The freezing temperature of the water choked out a gasp from his throat and he swallowed a lung full of water as he kicked his legs uselessly against the coiling tail now wrapping itself around his still struggling legs and to his hips to cease the movement altogether. 

He was effectively held suspended in the water, eyes wide as he tried to wriggle free but the coil of scales around him grew tighter and Aro groaned as he felt something crack. 

A rib? 

His resolve? 

“You’re so brave on land but under the water, you are nothing but prey helplessly thrashing and it is so, hmmm,-” Garrett took a deep breath as though he sought out the scent of something, and a rumbling purr filled Aro’s ears when what Garrett had looked for was found. “-Delicious. The warmth of your muscle, and the organs beneath bone and skin. I just know my teeth would sink into you softly,” Leaning in, Garrett slid his pointed tongue between Aro’s lips and drew him into a deep and bloody kiss as jagged teeth met skin. The feeling of the icy tongue in his mouth had him gag and the action moved him to struggle again. 

His vision grew dim as the lack of oxygen became near fatal. 

Something inside Aro cracked again another rib?

There was no way to tell and at that point, he didn’t care, dying seemed easier than to further struggle. 

He was too tired.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro miraculously survives and now there is the question of what happens next? 
> 
> Garrett proves he understands remorse much to his host's surprise.

###  Chapter Three

It was a surprise to Aro when his eyes opened and he found himself staring into the dark abyss of the pool room. There had been a moment as the darkness overtook his vision that he was sure he would die, but there he was laid out on his back on the side of the pool soaking wet and frozen to the bone in the pitch black. The candles he had hurriedly fetched before tossing Garrett into the pool earlier had guttered out and the matches in his pocket were useless to him now. 

After several seconds, in which Aro tried to get his bearings, he recalled the moment before his ‘untimely death’ and he drew a shaking hand to his lips, the taste of his own blood and seawater caused him to retch and he threw his aching body into the sitting position as he coughed up the water that had risen like bile to his throat. 

Gasping for air Aro tried to settle the urge to throw up and, without looking at the pool, Aro got to his feet and stumbled from the room to his study. It was warm and dry there, no glowing eyes penetrating the dark but for his own peace of mind, he slammed the door shut and locked it from the inside. 

Groping in the dark Aro found the bottle of brandy in its fancy decanter and pulled the stopper from the top and took a long drink until it burned his throat. Setting it down on his desk he set himself the task of lighting a fire in the grate, it was one of the only fireplaces of its kind in the mansion and Aro hated it. 

Hated it because it reminded him of his father and tradition. Hated it because he had had to spend time learning how to light a fire without matches or a lighter because his father said it was better to rely on yourself than watch others disappoint you. 

Was that why he was alone now? 

Garrett had all but reinforced that idea, drilled it into him when he nearly crushed the life out of him. People… mythical or not would always disappoint you. 

With the fire lit Aro grabbed the brandy decanter from his desk again and dragged a chair close to the flames to warm himself through. The best thing to do now was to avoid Garrett for the time being, he didn’t have the energy to argue with him and he had to admit, after what had happened, he was very much afraid of him. 

A twinge of pain reminded Aro that it was a possibility his ribs were broken by the merman and he likely needed someone to look him over to ensure he wasn’t too gravely injured. He felt… fine as much as he could be despite what had transpired. 

But had he really needed to goad Garrett like that? 

Feeling sufficiently dry, warm and drunk, Aro took the opportunity to check on the world outside. The air in the room was stifling and for the first time in a long time he craved fresh air from the great outdoors. 

The decanter was left on the floor by his seat and he slowly made his way to the window, each step measured and slow as he battled with the alcohol streaming through his body. There was no wind outside now, nothing but the screech of seabirds as he slid open the window and unlocked the shutters throwing them open to reveal a grey and dreary sky just like any other day. 

Light rain fell but there were no storm clouds above signalling another wave of bad weather and the world was still. 

How much time had passed since he had brought the merman to his home? A day? Two? 

With the room now flooded with daylight, Aro was able to check the time by the large clock on the wall, his own thoughts had drowned out the ticking but now it seemed louder than a bell toll. 

It was late afternoon and whatever light he had now would soon begin to fade into evening leaving him with nothing but the night to contend with again. Out of curiosity Aro hurried across the room, as best he could while being impared, and tried the light switch. When the room flooded with yellow light the sweet relief that filled him could scarcely be described. 

The phone rang suddenly and Aro clutched at his chest in surprise, and he mumbled under his breath that he was pleased no one could see him at that moment. All the same, with a deep blush intact he answered the call. 

“Aro?” It was the very familiar voice of  Carlisle . 

“Ah, if it isn’t the good Doctor,  Carlisle  Cullen!” His cheery tone grated on his own ears and suppressed a heavy sigh at himself. 

“How are you?” Aro heard the shuffling of papers and a pause before  Carlisle carried on, “It has been some time since you last saw me for your health check. Mind if I drop by in the morning now that God awful storm has passed us?” 

It was rather convenient that the doctor had called him just when he needed him but Aro was not in the business of believing in fate and whatnot. Having his ribs checked would be extremely helpful but explaining to  Carlisle how it had happened was the more pressing matter.

“Of course, tomorrow morning would be perfect. I wanted to see you anyhow, I’ve sustained an injury and need you to tell me if it is serious,” It made no sense for him to be vague, after all, how could he be helped if his friend had no idea what the problem was? 

“Ah, I see. Can you elaborate, I need to know if there is anything I might have to bring with me.”

There was silence on the phone line for a long moment as Aro tried to work out what to say without causing alarm to the degree that he may be questioned on how the injury came about. 

“I may have broken my ribs. Or perhaps cracked them, however, I am no doctor you will need to check for yourself, I suppose.” Trying to be offhand about it failed miserably because of the noise of concern he received from Carlisle. 

“Well, that does sound unpleasant. Does it hurt to breathe, any bruising or abnormal swelling?” 

Lifting his shirt to inspect, Aro was aghast at the dark purple bruise that had already formed over his ribs and waist. He could not tell if there was swelling as his eyes were focussing on the bruising that went around his sides and likely his back too.

Nothing Aro said to Carlisle would make any sense if he saw just how bad he looked. There was only one thing he could do and that was to delay the visit indefinitely. 

“Ah, now that you’ve mentioned it no, I perhaps just slept oddly. There is no need to come by. I am sure you have other people you must see that are far more important than I, it would be better if I called you to let you know when I am available.” He heard the beginning of a protest from the doctor as he slammed the phone back down onto the cradle ending the call. 

Exhaustion set in so suddenly after the call that Aro had to retake his seat by the fire for a moment to collect himself. If Carlisle dropped by he would have to tell him the truth and how would the doctor react to hearing that from someone he apparently believed was sane? 

Showing him Garrett was no longer an option and so now he had to think about what he was going to do with the merman. If his life was in danger whenever he got close to Garrett he would have to find a way to return him to the sea. 

There was no avoiding it. Aro would have to speak to the merman again and only then could he make a decision on his next steps. If Garret was well enough he would return to the beach and help him return home. If he was sick or still injured… What could he do? 

His eyes searched the room and when his gaze fell to his father’s old hunting gun he felt bile rise up in his throat. It was old, very old, his father’s father had given it to him and it was to be passed down generation after generation but ultimately it became a dust-covered relic of the Volturi family’s past. 

There would be no one for Aro to give the weapon to. 

If Garrett became too ill, would he have it in him to kill him? 

The thought was pushed aside as Aro rose to his feet again and unlocked the study door. Pulling it open he was greeted with the empty hall, though, he was not sure what he had expected. 

A distant sound of splashing floated up the hallway from the pool and Aro purposely walked in the opposite direction and up the stairs back to his bedroom. 

Conversing with Garrett would take some doing and part of him really wanted to look good just to really bolster his confidence. It always felt as though he tip-toed along a knife’s edge when trying to get any kind of information from the merman and he was steadily growing tired of it. 

He woke up 3 hours later and cursed under his breath. A headache threatened to split his head open and his mouth felt like he’d eaten sand, all in all he felt rather rough but he had to push on.

The initial plan was put into action. Wash. Dress. Stand far enough away from the pool that Garrett couldn’t reach him, and make the final decision on what was going to happen. He couldn’t avoid him and Garrett absolutely could not live in the pool room forever. 

After having spent far too long in the shower, he had an ensuite because he would hopefully never set foot in the other bathroom again, Aro dressed and tried to give himself a talking to. There were no words bright and optimistic enough for him to think any of this was a good idea and he really rather hated past Aro for his actions. 

Being kind was not worth it. At all. 

For a moment Aro stalled as he stood outside of the pool room, his hand hovered over the switch for the lights and he wondered how their conversation was going to go. 

_ He can only really do one of two things. He may have no remorse or he may apologise.  _ With that in mind Aro flicked on the lights and stepped into the room. The pool was now almost filled and he moved to turn off the pump.

His boots echoed loudly in his ears as he moved toward the pool. Garrett was lying curled up at the bottom of the deepest part but soon moved when he heard boots on tile. He unfurled fully and it took Aro by surprise again at just how big he actually was. 

The dark green almost black scales glinted prettily under the bright lights above them. He was an impressive creature and Aro appreciated just how powerful he looked. Just remembering how Garrett had almost killed him reminded him not to move from the spot he stood. 

Close enough to the edge that they could speak but not close enough for an arm to stretch out and drag him under. 

When Garrett broke the surface Aro saw the startled expression on his face. Wide-eyed and perhaps even relieved? 

“You came back?” The question was asked in such a small voice Aro nearly didn’t recognise it but he kept his cool and merely nodded. 

“A lack of better judgement on my part, I’m sure.” It felt good to be the one with the upper hand for once. 

To Aro’s amazement, Garrett looked genuinely sorrowful as he rested his arms on the edge of the pool and looked up at him. 

“I’m sorry,” The words tumbled from Garrett’s mouth so fast that it was nearly missed but Aro had heard it and still he remained silent. “You have only tried to help me from the beginning and I could have killed you.” 

Well, he hadn’t expected a real apology, it didn’t move him from his spot but he was inwardly thankful for it all the same. 

“I was so- wait, let me show you something.” Garrett seemed eager to prove something to Aro and he gestured for him to come closer which Aro immediately shut down. 

“I don’t think so.”

Realising Aro’s reluctance Garrett had the decency to blush and the purple that spread over his skin was so enchanting Aro had to take a step back to stop himself from moving forward. 

“Of course, yes. You should be able to see from there anyway.” His tone now dull, a far cry from the excited chattering moments before. “I am not showing you this to excuse my behaviour but to explain it only.” As he spoke Garrett unwound the bandage on his arm to reveal clear and unmarred skin where there still should have been a deep and healing wound. 

This time Aro broke his own rules and moved forward but still not close enough for them to touch at all. He stared at the space where he had spent so much time picking splintered wood from a wound, and he recalled vividly how cold Garrett’s skin had been and how horrified he had been to see blue blood rather than red. 

“I have the capability to accelerate healing but it comes with the cost of using a lot of energy. I had hoped that I would be able to heal fast enough that I could return home but instead, I made myself incredibly hungry and put you in a lot of danger. 

I am old enough to know better and yet I let my hunger get the better of me and I am sorry for that. We may not see eye to eye but my actions would not be condoned by my king or even those that revile the existence of humans.” 

Why was he telling him all of this now? 

Aro frowned and knelt down so he was at a more comfortable level with the merman and sighed as he stared right into the crimson eyes of the one that nearly ate him. 

“Why tell me this now, to ease your own conscience?” At any other time this would have been harsh but they both seemed to think it was well deserved and definitely more than Garrett deserved. 

_ It would have been easy for me to fetch that gun from my wall and end his life before he could even blink.  _ The horrible thought slid lazily around his mind until Aro pushed it aside and locked it away deep down with the other awful thoughts he never wanted to think again. 

“It is what you deserve and I cannot offer you more than this. Information is all I have.” 

It was a start though not enough to form a truce yet Aro was sure they could make that happen with a little more time. 

Now he had to ask the most awkward of questions, only reminded by the sting of the cuts to his lips as he offered a somewhat strained smile to Garrett who was definitely still trying to rebuild his bridges. 

“What I do not understand out of all of this, Garrett, is why did you kiss me?” Had he not so desperately wanted an answer he would have crowed with delight at how dark the blush on the merman’s cheeks became at his question. 

“It just felt right.” A simple answer and it caught Aro off guard to the point that all he could do was take a deep breath to steady his heart which started thundering just a little too fast for his liking. 

Wincing he stood up and put space between them again more than before while he lifted a hand to his ribs and smoothed a hand over the side that had pained him. 

Garrett watched him from the poolside with interest as he tried to soothe the ache with the palm of his hand and he knew what he would ask before he even spoke. 

“I hurt you badly I could tell from the way you stood but your actions now prove it. May I see?” 

Everything in him wanted to deny Garrett his request, how dare he ask to see the damage he had done to him! And yet Aro still unbuttoned his shirt to reveal the dark bruises that wrapped around his chest and waist. 

He did not mention the bruises on his legs, they were not as dark or painful as the rest and they would heal without incident. His chest and ribs he knew would cause a problem if he did not see the doctor soon. 

"I nearly killed you. How are you able to move so easily?" When his bloody red gaze moved from the bruises up to Aro's face they held such concern and it irked him more than it perhaps should have. 

"See, I am not sure I can really feel the full extent of my injuries as of yet. I got very drunk earlier and I believe I may still be somewhat impaired meaning the pain isn't at the forefront of my mind as it were…" a jumbled and near unintelligible response but it seemed Garrett understood but he didn't seem impressed. 

"I could smell the alcohol as soon as I broke the surface of the water." 

"How do you know what alcohol smells like?"

"I've met sailors." 

Fair enough, that made a lot of sense. It didn't mean Aro was happy that his… Tennant? No… his patient? Absolutely not.

Whatever Garrett was, or was not, Aro was not happy that he had mentioned the smell of it. It was rather distasteful to have your guest know you were probably stinking drunk. 

"If you've met a sailor you're lucky to be alive, shouldn't you be stuffed and mounted by now?" 

"Mounted?" The word was said with a slight stutter and a purple flush flared over Garrett's skin. Whatever it meant to Garrett was not what Aro had intended but now he'd seen the reaction he needed the reason. 

"Ah, you know displayed on a wall as a trophy?" There was a deafening silence that dragged out between them for quite some time before Garrett slowly nodded and he cleared his throat averting his eyes from Aro. 

"T-they don't care what is below a human-looking face. If the face poses no danger they will tell you anything you ask. 

The more alcohol they consume the fewer inhibitions they have. I think this is why you are so bold now?" Garrett let out a breath not fully recovered from whatever it had been that seemed to derail him so. 

"Did I say something to you that made you uncomfortable?" Aro gently lowered himself to his knees then moved to sit cross-legged close enough to the edge of the pool but still not close enough that they could touch one another. 

If there was one thing he would manage it would be that he'd not make the same mistake twice. 

"No, you did not." Abrupt. Too abrupt and Aro forced himself not to grin like a child so as not to earn the merman's ire once again. 

"Very well, but you are welcome to speak freely here. You needn't worry about judgement from me.

In any case, I think we've spoken enough for now. Why don't I see if there is anything you can eat and hopefully the murderous inclinations shall not return." 

There was no response from Garrett other than a heated glare but it was easily brushed aside when the menacing claws were well out of reach of his soft flesh.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro and Garrett make their peace over food. They both come to terms with the fact they were both to blame for Aro's near-death experience and mentally vow to themselves that it would not happen again. 
> 
> The mansion is a lonely place and Aro isn't sure how he will feel once his only source of true company has to leave, meanwhile Garrett isn't exactly thinking the same thing but he really doesn't want to be alone.

Chapter Four

It turned out that Garrett could eat anything Aro did within reason. 

Fresh meat and vegetables went down well, though decidedly undercooked. Actually, raw, but Garrett happily tore into the still bloody side of beef Aro had sourced for him from the fridge. 

They discovered that spinach and other leafy greens were to his taste also, along with a hunk of salmon which depleted Aro's food stores somewhat but it didn't worry him. The butcher and fishmonger did always seem to give him cuts big enough to feed a family of 4 rather than enough for one man living alone. 

Luck was on his side in that respect. 

It might have also had something to do with the fact they were clients of his and his rates were reasonable enough for them to take a liking to him. 

In all honesty, Aro didn't have friends, just acquaintances and clients that liked him well enough to engage in small talk in the street should they pass him. That was all he needed and if they tried to get any closer to him Aro managed to be awkward enough to scare them off. 

Meanwhile, he was beginning to understand why he might have been seen as odd, afterall he housed a merman in his swimming pool and was feeding him even after he was nearly killed by him. 

"I feel better, thank you." The awkward moment earlier was completely forgotten for now and Garrett offered a genuine smile that would have been quite nice had it not displayed rows of jagged bloodstained teeth. 

"I apologize that it has taken me several days to work out that I needed to feed you." 

"I was too stubborn to admit I needed help. The fault is also mine." 

It was quite literally the most civil conversation he and Garrett had had since their first meeting. Aro didn't like to admit it but the merman was really rather pleasant when he wanted to be. 

When the realisation dawned on him it took everything in him not to literally smack his own forehead upon noting that,  _ of course he was cranky he was exceedingly hungry! Starving probably!  _

Really, Aro had to admit that perhaps he had gone through life not understanding the emotions of others and where they stemmed from. Mostly because he hadn't had to due to his father refusing to show emotion and his mother lived in a dream world of her own making to the point she likely could no longer tell what was reality and what was her vivid imagination.

"Is there no one else here?" Garrett asks, it was only then Aro realised how quiet they'd both been and it had allowed him to fall deeply into thought.

While being a deep thinker in his household growing up was encouraged it was only upon subjects that his father found agreeable. 

Nothing fanciful, not magic, not mystery, only politics or religion or something that would strengthen the mind! 

Dull things a child and then teenager didn't want to think about in their spare time. Debating these things would have been interesting had he had more than just his father to speak with. 

“No, just you and I.”  _ And until you came along I had no idea how achingly lonely it was to be like this.  _ There many words left unspoken words that Aro had no intention unleashing to the poor unsuspecting merman. 

Emotions were odd things to share with someone that had tried to crush the life out of you not even 4 hours ago. Moreso because Aro really didn’t want to give a piece of himself to Garrett when he was going to leave soon. 

“Sounds lonely.” The offhand remark was more than enough to cut Aro deeply and he moved to his feet wanting to find a way to hide himself without revealing the hurt. “Where are you going?!” Garrett called after him but Aro didn’t turn back or respond and instead pretended as though the merman didn’t exist at that moment. 

Pride aside, Aro wasn’t sure why he had left so abruptly. It wasn’t easy to admit that Garrett had hit the nail on the head with extreme precision, though the words that had come out of his mouth were so casual. 

It was more a passing observation than something meant to genuinely hurt him but all the same it brought forth the realisation that he was lonely.  _ It was _ so very lonely in the huge house on his own. But he had been so lost in his own thoughts for so long without interruption that he just hadn’t realised that real live company was so desperately needed. 

Of course, he had family he could speak with if he desired but they were as dull as dishwater and while he knew he was too it didn’t make for a very lively conversation over the phone. His cousin Marcus was a fair bit older than he and mourned the loss of his wife still after 10 years, they had nothing in common. His cousin Caius was around the same age but being so close in age was all they shared and would often quarrel over the phone or, if Aro was press-ganged into visiting family, they would argue face to face. 

The need for genuine affection was stark within him as he marched down the corridor and away from Garrett who still called after him with much confusion. Aro knew he just needed some normality and so he headed to his office, it was on the same floor as the study but not so richly decorated with family heirlooms. 

Sitting at his desk and arranging the paperwork before him soothed the chaos inside him because if he could not work out the chaos he could at least bore it to death with numbers. There were a few things he needed to catch up on for his clients and this was the perfect time to lose himself in his work if only for the distraction. 

Aro didn’t know how long he had been working when he first heard the strange sound echoing through his home. It rang out once in a long almost mournful tone but he had no idea what it could have been. 

The second time it made him set his pen down to listen, it seemed to be coming from the direction of the pool but he couldn’t really be certain. Aptly distracted by something new Aro got up from his seat and moved toward the door almost tentatively and listened to the now silent halls. 

Again, the sound drifted through the halls, something haunting but it drew him in, a song of sorts but it was not played on any instrument Aro had ever heard of before, it was not recognisable to him and so he let his curiosity get the better of him.

Whatever it was it grew louder the closer to the pool he got, it did something to him and panic bubbled up the depths of his chest and he broke out into a run. His boots pounded hard against the wooden floors until leather met tile and he almost skidded to a halt when he is faced with Garrett trying and failing to drag himself out of the pool to rest on the edge, his mouth forming the notes of a song that Aro could not distinguish as anything that could have come from a humanesque throat. 

It was a siren call? 

“What are you doing?” Aro’s voice came out as nothing more than a whisper, the running and the sound had left him breathless for very different reasons. He moved toward the corner of the pool that Garrett had tried to use to get out and there were deep scratches and cracks in the tiles where his claws had tried to gain purchase on the smooth surface. 

“You left so suddenly, I think… I was afraid that you would not come back this time. I realised that currently I depend on you and if you were gone for good I would die here alone. I don’t want to be alone.” Whatever pride Garrett had once had likely diminished when he had been dragged down the stairs in the tattered old ships sail but more so upon admitting his fears of being without company. 

"What was the sound you were making just now?" Aro neatly side stepped the admission from Garrett and the merman looked rather relieved for it and slid back into the pool properly until the water covered his shoulders. 

“Oh, it was a siren call.” The tone giving away that Aro should have already known that but when Aro provided nothing other than a blank stare Garrett seemed to huff and puff a little before moving closer back to the edge of the pool with the intent of explaining. 

Against his better judgement, Aro moved to sit close to the edge, they were nearly touching but this time it did not feel odd or dangerous to do so. Perhaps, it was stupid to think he was safe to sit so close but there was the overwhelming urge to show Garrett he trusted him building up inside Aro and so he stayed sitting near the edge. 

His legs were in grabbing range of Garrett’s claws but the merman himself hadn’t seemed to notice this and only sighed before resting his forehead on his arms which he had folded neatly before him on the cold tiles. 

“This is somewhat awkward,” He said, his muffled voice gave the impression that this was a conversation he would rather not have at that moment but there was no way to get out of it unless Aro was feeling particularly charitable. 

He was not.

Garrett was opening up to him and he was about to learn something new about his kind, why would he stop him now? 

Unless. Was this embarrassing for the both of them?

It didn’t matter, Aro really wanted to know more. 

“The siren call, as I believe in human myth, is something you use to lure ships to rocks and send sailors to their death. Is that not correct?” 

There was a long silence but after a while Garrett shook his head and looked up at Aro with a faint flush blooming over his cheeks. There was the obvious action of stalling for time as Garrett pushed himself from the edge of the pool again and disappeared under the surface of the water before reappearing. Clearly feigning the need to keep his skin wet as he tried to find words.

It was actually quite sweet that he seemed so flustered and Aro allowed Garrett the time to fuss in the water because he was getting more information by the second by just looking at him. Whatever he had to say must have been either embarrassing or very important. 

“May I ask something that might be a tad easy to answer?” 

“Yes, please do.” 

This earned an amused smile from Aro and he moved closer to the edge still, it was definitely tempting fate to do this but he had reconciled himself to the fact that he was already alone would it matter if he died now? 

“Do you live in groups? Such as family units like a mother and father, children, aunts, grandmas and brothers?” It seemed an easier question to answer and Garrett remained silent for a few moments before answering. 

“Sometimes, some of us are born and only rely on our family for a few years before leaving the family unit and becoming solitary. It is a natural thing, just as some merfolk like to eat fish and others do not. 

Some of us are born with the innate need to be alone. Usually they are trained to be the ones that gather food or they travel the seas they scout out new places to live or collect knowledge.” Garrett seemed relaxed speaking on something else but he did seem tired and as much as Aro wanted to ask him more he wondered if it were best to leave him to sleep instead? 

“Hmm, I think that is something humans do too. There are many countries where humans live entirely different lives and have a different set of beliefs. Some people take it upon themselves to try and  _ educate _ those other humans on the right way to live, but really there is no right way to live, as long as you aren’t hurting anyone I think you can live however you like.” Aro was sitting so close to the edge of the pool now he could almost dip his feet in he had wanted, but something inside him warred with his wish to befriend Garrett. If they were to fully reconcile he would need to push past that. 

“That I can understand. There is not just one type of merfolk, we are all different. Some of us don’t have the same colour skin, take a mer from warmer seas, they are brightly coloured and live amongst coral closer to the surface of the waters. 

My kind lives deep in the darker waters where the sunlight can just reach but it is mostly gloomy. It is why I am so pale and more well equipped for fighting rather than camouflage like a coral mer.” 

Aro hadn’t realised how wrapt he had become as Garrett spoke, his voice was even and warm now. Not the prickly sarcastic bite he had had when they first met, that man had gone now and it was almost as if he had never existed in the first place. The only reminder now was the pain in his ribs and the bruises on his skin but if he sat still enough it didn’t bother him too much, still he knew it would need to be looked at by Carlisle as dismayed as that made him. 

While it was easy to lie to someone over the phone he knew he would be unable to hide the truth from the doctor should he visit. The sneaking suspicion that Carlisle planned to show up unannounced played on his mind for a moment until he realised Garrett had asked a question and was now awaiting an answer.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to ignore you. I was just thinking,” He let the words trail off into silence and a flush bloomed over his cheeks when Garrett laughed at him though the sound itself held a nervous edge. 

“Do you still want to know what the siren song is for?” Garrett’s honesty surprised Aro, as refreshing as it was, he could have gotten away with not bringing the subject up again and gotten off scot free from ever having to explain himself. 

Was this who Garrett really was? 

This man that would glance away almost coyly when embarrassed, but had such a boiling rage when taunted? 

That rage had been warranted, Aro supposed, he was afraid and in pain, starving too! What manner of man or beast would not be the same in that situation and with the goading anyone would lash out. 

It was rather apparent Aro felt no fear being near Garrett now, but trust would still need to be built but it seemed that was hurrying itself along with ease. So drawn in was he when Garrett it was almost embarrassing, this was nothing short of a crush and Aro was appalled that he had accepted it so readily. 

Leaning forward slightly, Aro offered his kindest expression though it was broken with a wince as pain rushed through his ribs and he sat back rubbing the sore spot as gently as he could. 

“You are in pain still, perhaps you need to rest.” Garrett yawned and a smile broke out afterwards, the sharp teeth gleaming under strip lights didn’t seem so horrifying when they were displayed by an almost roguish grin. 

In fact, the very sight of that smile made Aro’s heart flutter a moment and as such it prompted him to get to his feet. It was almost definitely time to get some decent sleep if he was reacting to a mere smile like that. Also, he was so sure Carlisle would appear in the morning that he wanted to look refreshed and at least somewhat semi-presentable over the wide-eyed wild haired look he had likely sported for the past several days. 

“Rest, a clever idea. I will speak to you in the morning and hopefully arrange for food supplies to be delivered.” 

With that he waved his goodbye to Garrett, switched off the pool room lights and made his way upstairs to his room. 

Everything had been turned on its head to the point that Aro wasn’t sure if what was happening was truly real, Regardless, and with the pain aside, he was having more fun than he’d had in years. 

When the time came for Garrett to leave he was sure it would be a struggle to live alone once again, even after having company for such a short space of time it had truly made a difference. 

Or at least, Aro believed so. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carlisle pays a visit as he said he would and is introduced to Garrett, they don't see eye to eye in any capacity. The doctor warns Aro off him but it falls on deaf ears.

###  Chapter Five

As predicted, Carlisle showed up at Aro’s door the next morning wearing a long white doctor’s coat and a concerned expression. He seemed to relax somewhat when Aro answered the door in bright spirits and ushered him in with a smile. Though somewhat, out of character, Carlisle didn’t mention his behaviour but did return the smile with one of his own and they chatted idly as Aro led him down to his study. 

“I was troubled by what you had said yesterday over the phone. I know you told me not to come but you seemed so out of sorts when you spoke and well,” Carlisle paused and tried to maintain a level of professionalism but failed when he took Aro’s hand in his as a means to portray their friendship, “You are here alone and with your mother’s medical history I… admit I feared you may have-” He stopped and let go of Aro’s hand apologising as he did so. 

There was a time that Aro might have been immensely offended by Carlisle’s words but today he could not find it in him to get angry, not when he had worried about the same things himself. 

His mother had suffered from a dissociative disorder that caused her to find coping mechanisms in a fantasy world in her own mind. While many found her whimsical and bright, a novelty to discuss, it meant that Aro never saw much of her and when he did she did not fully recognise him. 

There were few moments in his memories wherein she had complete lucidity though she was also so bright and cheerful, he never saw her cry or raise her voice. For a long time, Aro had grown up not realising how odd it was for a person to only exhibit joy and contentment. Due to this, his father raised him almost single-handedly. 

Even though he was a tough man, dour and dull he had ensured Aro was educated appropriately and was never without food and clothing. While he had tried to model his son into his image and failed, he did seem somewhat proud of Aro when he followed in his footsteps and took up accounting. 

Then his mother went missing and everything just sort of fell apart. 

For the longest time, his father was a suspect in his mother’s disappearance and it put a strain on their relationship, though not because Aro believed he was to blame, but because his father had never said he was not guilty, had never claimed he was not the reason for her absence. It had driven his younger self wild, they had argued nightly and so fierce was Aro’s anger at his father that they ended up avoiding one another completely for weeks. 

By the time they were speaking again, all charges had been dropped against his father and life returned to normal. They did not speak of his mother again and the police stated that there wasn’t enough evidence to convict his father and that, with her track record, she likely wandered off in a haze and fell into the sea.

It was horrible but Aro had to accept it. 

When he looked to Carlisle properly the doctor was wringing his hands together anxiously and he felt it only fair to put him out of his misery as soon as he could.

“I understand your concern.” And he really did, because now thinking back on all his mother had done… was he just imagining there was a merman in his swimming pool? Did Garrett exist and were the broken ribs self-inflicted while he floated through a world he thought was real only to be acting out a fantasy? 

It scared him and he knew now that was why he was so hesitant to have Carlisle there if his ribs were broken as he suspected they were… he bit the inside of his lip before silently beckoning Carlisle to follow him. 

“To put my mind at ease, tell me what you see in here.” if there was nothing there how would he mask his terror and could he trust Carlisle to keep Garrett's existence a secret if he was there? 

Each step down the hall felt loud and daunting as they moved ever closer to the door. 

There was no sound of splashing as they stepped inside and when Aro flicked on the lights, for a horrifying moment, the dark shadow in the water was absent. 

As he stepped in closer he realised Garrett was curled up against the closest wall of the pool to him and his joy sprang forth as a laugh as he watched as Garrett unfurled himself and broke the surface with a sleepy smile. 

Behind him Carlisle gasped and his doctor's bag clattered to the floor, in seconds Garrett was a monster again and he bared his jagged teeth, claws scraping at the tiles, his body hard and poised for attack.

"No, no! Garrett, it's alright!" Aro, without thinking, rushed to the edge of the pool and tried to make soothing sounds to calm the merman. 

On his knees, Aro leaned down and stroked Garrett's tangled hair until his hissing and snarling was a mere grumble and eventually he fell silent but his dark eyes remained on the doctor.

"W-what is that thing, Aro?!" Carlisle's composure had fled and he looked stricken by what his eyes beheld before him. "Is this the thing that hurt you?" His voice was calmer than his expression and he made no move to step further into the room. 

"He's not a  _ thing _ , Carlisle. He's a merman and yes… he did hurt me but it was an accident." 

Clearly not confident with what Aro had said, Carlisle eyes Garrett again but he takes a step forward and reaches out to Aro to pull him away from the edge. 

Upon seeing what Carlisle meant to do, Aro jerked away, his boots sliding on the wet tiles and he sailed backwards crashing into the water. He hears Carlisle call out to him but it is muffled by the water. 

Strong arms wrapped around him and he was pulled to the surface, though the water was not deep enough that Aro could not swim by himself. The water was still freezing and with shaking hands, from the cold, Aro gripped the side of the pool with the intention of pulling himself up and out. 

The strong arms around him loosen and he was lifted out of the water with ease. Soaking wet and shivering Aro glared at Carlisle who raised his hands in surrender almost instantly giving him an apologetic smile. 

“Let’s get you dried and we can see about these broken ribs you mentioned yesterday.” Changing the subject seemed to work well and Aro felt the anger inside him cool and subdue as he nodded and gestured for Carlisle to lead the way. 

The doctor had been in his home plenty of times, he was aware of all the rooms and what they were. Thankfully, polite as always he waited downstairs in the study while Aro dried off and redressed in his bedroom. 

Standing before the mirror Aro traced the barely-there silver scars on his chest under the purple-black bruises that bloomed over his skin and gave a heavy sigh. It was well past his 12th week but with all the  _ excitement _ of having Garrett around it hadn’t bothered him so much that he had missed something so important, but he assumed that was why he felt restless even when things had started to go well with the merman. 

Not wanting to keep Carlisle waiting any longer he pulled on a dry shirt and buttoned it up as he headed back to his study where he had left the doctor with tea. When he reappeared Carlisle looked relieved to see him return as though Aro had some inclination of escaping his own home to avoid a medical check-up. 

Why be afraid of doctors, he had seen so many in his lifetime, they had helped him become who he was now. He owed them some respect at least. 

They talked through how Aro was doing for a while, mentally and physically before he was given the necessary injections, and after much coaxing Aro showed his friend the bruising and was told very bluntly that his ribs were indeed broken. 

“Just ensure you take deep breaths, it will help you avoid pneumonia, though falling into the ice-cold swimming pool would not have helped. The only medication I can really advise is any over the counter pain reliever. 

More than anything you need time to heal. I would have thought that would be easy for you but it seems not seeing as you were injured quite badly in the first place. 

Accountants don’t usually end up this way. You are definitely more adventurous than you used to be, Aro. Not so quiet and withdrawn. 

Perhaps that creature has helped you in its own odd way.” 

Aro bristled at Carlise’s words and curled his lip into a sneer at him feeling wildly defensive and possessive of the merman down the hall. While he understood that Garrett was dangerous he truly believed they had come to an agreement… a truce. 

They would not hurt one another. 

“ _ Do not _ call him an ‘ _ it _ ’, they used to call me that too, remember?” 

The sudden snarl in his voice forced Carlisle to look away and he nodded but didn’t say anything- of course, he remembered and he likely felt foolish for forgetting. But Aro had never forgotten the memory still followed him around on his bad days. 

“I could have let that define me, I could have let it break me but I didn’t”

“No, it made you angry instead. It hardened you and you took it as a weapon.” When Carlisle spoke his voice was quiet and soft and he moved to pack away his things instead of looking up at his friend. 

“I am not a spiteful or hateful man, I may be quiet and find no interest in spending time with others but do not mistake me as someone who will allow others to treat me like I am a freak.” The words came out harshly but found he did not care how he made the doctor feel at that moment. 

“I apologise, Aro, it was insensitive of me to say such things but please allow me to at least worry about you and that creature in your swimming pool. What brought you to such a moment that you decided to put something so dangerous in your home?” 

In all fairness, Aro did understand his friend’s worry, after all, he had already been hurt by Garrett. To smooth over the small spat between them Aro gestured for Carlisle to take a seat and he poured him more tea in hopes it would confirm he wished for the man to stay longer. 

“I will tell you everything, it is not a long story but, I must admit, having pleasant company such as yourself is a nice change to the sparring matches I had with Garrett.” Aro ignored the face Carlisle made when he referred to the merman by his name. Try as he might to have Aro see his way of thinking he was not going to let him get away with treating Garrett as nothing more than a monster. 

Everyone had the capacity to be a monster, you weren’t born one, not really. What qualities did one need to become a monster and if there was an outline where could he find it? 

Being outside the realm of human did not automatically make one a monster. 

And so, Aro sat and told Carlisle everything that had happened and at the end of his explanation the good doctor did not look horrified but something definitely seemed to bother him about the whole thing. Well, aside from hearing how his friend had almost died! 

“Something about the way you talk about him makes me think that maybe... ah, no it couldn’t be that perhaps you might quite like the gentleman in the pool?” The smile on his lips was more a smirk and Aro was instantly filled with regret for revealing a single thing about the situation.

Of course, he was right, he did like Garrett, Aro had warmed up to him but God knows why considering they had started out so awfully. Things were moving rather fast with the two of them with a friendship budding that really shouldn’t have been. 

“It isn’t a good idea to get involved with him any more than you already are but I know you won’t listen to me and soon enough you’ll be embroiled in another situation with him. What next, Aro?” 

“I don’t understand what you mean.” 

“What will happen when you have to let him go, do you think you can follow him into the sea, do you think he will wish to stay with you here trapped in a pool?” Oh, his words were nothing but the truth and it hurt and embarrassed Aro to hear them. 

“I do not know what to do when that time comes.” 

“It would be worth thinking about that, Aro. He will not wish to be cramped up in this place when he has had vast oceans before this.” 

He was well aware of what he needed to do. 

If he was honest with himself he knew his feelings were not reciprocated and letting Garrett go would only be difficult in finding a way to get him back down to the beach. 

“I will ask him when he wishes to leave and that will be that.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As promised to Carlisle, Aro asks Garrett when he wants to leave and gets an answer he isn't fully prepared for though really it is no answer at all. Letting his thoughts run away with him, Aro puts a plan into action without confirming with his houseguest if he's on the right track.

###  Chapter Six

It wasn’t long after their awkward conversation that Carlisle left to see other patients and Aro was gifted with the peace of not having to look the man in the eye and admit he had feelings for a creature that had tried to kill him. 

Was it too late to pour himself a drink?

It couldn’t hurt to have it to warm himself up after falling into that freezing water… even if he was already dried, dressed and feeling well. Who would know but him? 

Garrett would but it isn’t as though he would care what Aro did, he knew he was an adult and theirs was not a relationship wherein they could tell one another what to do, it likely never would be. 

It was a non-relationship. 

Nothing really, and he had to keep telling himself that otherwise his thoughts would wander and would trip and fall into territory he had no intention of allowing himself to explore even if his mind pushed at the boundaries insistently. 

How had he managed to allow himself the space to garner feelings for Garrett? 

The time between their anger and civility was short and even now he struggled to think of a decent reason why he would like the merman so much. They had such brief moments where things were pleasant but was that enough, or was Aro so lonely that the first person, or creature, that came along he attached himself to in hopes of banishing the feeling of emptiness?

Thinking such a thing only served to have him shudder and push the idea aside as he walked back to his study to pour a drink. 

There was much to consider but mainly he needed to know when Garrett wanted to leave; they were no longer bound by circumstances beyond their control. The weather was pleasant, almost, and the wounds that had hindered release were no longer an issue. 

Ultimately, there seemed to be nothing in the way and Aro found himself wildly unhappy at the prospect of Garrett leaving him, even if they both agreed it was the right thing to do, it didn’t mean he was happy about it. 

This was not about him and it should never have been. 

_I will ask him when he wishes to leave and that will be that._

Even with no one but Carlisle there to witness the statement Aro knew he should not back out. Cowardly, that’s how he felt and there was no one in the world who could convince him he was anything else. 

_Even if you’re lonely you need to think of everyone in the situation._ With his thoughts against him, he decided the drink was not a good idea. Now was a better time than any to ask Garrett what he wanted to do and with that in mind, he moved away from his desk in the study and down toward the pool. 

Garrett was already leaning against the side of the pool when Aro entered the room and he looked eager to ask some questions. How bright his expression was as a hint of a smile played at his lips and Aro felt an ache in his chest that he knew was attraction rearing its ugly head. 

“That man that came to see you was a doctor, yes?” 

How had Garrett known what a doctor was? 

Instead of asking what had been on his mind as he entered the room he just nodded and dragged an old garden chair over to the edge of the water. If he’d had the mind he could have put the water heater on but Garrett hadn’t complained about the temperature and Aro had no wish to get wet again so he said nothing. 

“You see him often?”

“No, not really. Every 12 weeks or so. How do you count time where you are from?” This was not what he had wanted to talk about but Garrett was in good spirits and Aro couldn’t deny how wonderful this curious side of the merman was. 

“The moon. Those that live in pods, uh, groups, they assign different days to one another to check the phase of the moon. If you live alone as I do, I have to do it but I don’t really check all that often. 

It doesn’t make much difference to me how much time has passed.” The shrug was casual, nothing behind it but Aro didn’t like the idea of Garrett being on his own even though previously he had explained that sometimes merfolk wished to live a solitary life. 

It just didn’t seem to him that was really what he wanted. 

“How did you know what a doctor was?” The answer didn’t really matter all that much but it was a good distraction from the question that loomed over him because as much as he wished to do the right thing… he really did not want to. 

There was a silence as Garrett considered his answer or perhaps tried to remember where he’d learned the word from. After another moment he gave the explanation that it must have been one of the sailors that had told him about them or that one of them was a doctor, he wasn’t sure. 

  
  


“You’re free to go home anytime you wish, Garrett. I don’t understand why you’re still here.” It was abrupt and the gentle light in Garrett’s eyes was extinguished almost immediately. Not sure what to say to bring that light back Aro moved from his seat and sat on the edge of the pool uncaring his boots where now fully submerged in the cold water. 

Leaning over he did what he knew he absolutely should not have and pressed a hand to Garrett’s cheek, he saw the merman close his eyes for a moment as a sigh escaped his pale lips. 

“What stops you from leaving?” The moment was a tender one for the both of them and Aro could feel his heart nearly beating out of his chest as he continued to press the warmth of his palm against Garrett’s icy cheek. 

No words passed between them but eventually, Garrett heaved another heavy sigh and he slowly pulled away from the warmth of Aro’s hand and looked up at him with a pleading expression that seemed not to fit his face.

“You must understand that I am ashamed to talk about this because then you will know how I lied to you.” 

Lied? 

It was entirely possible that Garrett had lied to him from the beginning, from the very moment they first spoke. It just didn’t seem to phase Aro that it was something that had actually happened, did it matter all that much if he had? 

“But that is not the reason I want to remain here.” 

“Let’s not talk about it for now then. As much as it may seem that we are avoiding the subject I can see it makes you uncomfortable and that wasn’t my intention when asking you the original question.” Formal, too formal, but now he wasn't all that sure how to act around Garrett. 

It was extremely apparent that in the short time they had spent together Aro had inexplicably fallen for Garrett in some terrible but all too thrilling twist of fate. Not wanting to inspect too closely when it had happened Aro had an awful feeling it was right at the very moment Garrett had tried to kill him and that thought sickened him and excited him in equal parts. 

It really was astounding how the human mind worked, and really, he could have put it down to loneliness because he had been on his own for a while by the time Garrett came into his life. While the days still bled into one another, with someone around, Aro found he didn’t mind all that much. 

Tucking an errant strand of dark hair behind his ear, Aro turned to the patio doors behind him and saw bright sunshine streamed through the glass. The temperature had barely risen over 10 degrees for weeks but it seemed pleasant outside and Aro pushed himself to his feet and approached the doors.

The key was already in the lock and with a swift click the doors were thrown open and the onset of spring apparent on a gentle breeze brought the smell of sunshine and grass into the room. 

“It’s moments like this I wish I had someone to walk with in the garden. I think this is the first time I find it a shame that you don’t have legs.” Spoken with a smile Aro turns to find Garrett watching the grass ripple in the light breeze with a desperate sort of longing that stopped him in his tracks. Any other words that had been ready to spring forth from his lips died on his tongue. 

He wanted to stay because he wanted to be human.

“I see…” Aro trailed off, his voice a whisper almost unheard with the breeze pouring in from the outside, but Garrett had heard him and now they shared a look of knowing. 

“You need to tell me everything and start from the beginning.”

Hesitation kept Garrett silent and Aro watched as the merman’s gaze was drawn back out to the gardens beyond the patio doors.

Would he be more inclined to speak if they were outside?

There was no way he’d be able to get him out there and he had nowhere to put him aside from the lake but it was too far for him to drag Garrett with his limited strength. Plus he had discarded the ship sail not wanting to embarrass the merman further by having it be the only mode of transportation to get him anywhere.

Whatever past Aro had decided he hadn’t had the decency to share his plan with future Aro and now he were stuck wondering how to manoeuvre the mythical man from an indoor pool to the lake. The natural surroundings would do Garrett some good and there were fish in the lake he could eat.

Did he have a wheelchair still?

When his father became too old and frail to wander the house they’d bought a simple wheelchair so that Aro could take him from room to room on the ground floor. It had allowed him some freedoms as his health declined and his independence faded.

There was no time he could recall where the wheelchair was tossed out or given away. It was somewhere in the house and finding it was the key to coaxing Garrett’s story from him.

Feeling brighter than he had in days Aro vanished off without a word to Garrett who probably hadn’t even noticed he was gone so enthralled was he by the rippling green of the grass.

The gloom of the house seemed oppressive away from the sunlit pool room and Aro gave pause a moment to allow his eyes to adjust. 

_Are you doing this for you or him?_ Aro asked himself as he resumed his walking and trailed water from his soaking wet boots down the hallway toward the old junk room closest to the front door. 

_You need to stop getting soaked in any form, it can’t be healthy._

Such jumbled thoughts bothered him even as he pushed open the door to the old junk room and a cloud of dust blew up into his face as he stepped inside. It left him coughing until tears streamed down his face and he clutched his ribs, the pain spiking through the worst of the breakage like a thousand pins being pushed into the bone itself.

_Are you doing this for you or him?_

He didn’t know right then and there who this was all for. 

But if Garrett wanted to remain with him even if it was just to find a way to become human Aro would accept it. He would do whatever he could to help him and if the time came that Garrett wished to be released to another he would let him go.

If such a time came at all. Everything he had considered was all on the supposition that Garrett did, in fact, wish to live and walk like a human. 

Using his shirt sleeve as a mask to protect him from the dust Aro blinked through tears peering into the gloom of the room in search of the wheelchair. Blindly, with his free hand, he groped the wall beside him for the light switch until his fingers slid over cold metal and the room flooded with light from an ancient bulb hanging in the centre of the ceiling.

How long had it been since he was last in there?

With the aid of the light, he found what he was looking for with relative ease.

It took some time to unfold the chair with the metal and leather stiff with disuse but after a few minutes, it wheeled across the hardwood floor like new. It looked so flimsy compared to how Aro had remembered it as he stood back regarding it in the hallway feeling quite unsure of how it would fare under the weight of a leviathan tail.

If it buckled it buckled, he supposed. Nothing was made to last forever and it would be allowed to serve its purpose one last time before giving up the ghost.

With that in mind, he grabbed the handles and pushed it back down the hallway to the pool room.

Even if it was the only thing he could do for Garrett, he would ensure the merman felt the warm grass under the sun at least once in his life.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They were supposed to just go outside... that is absolutely not what happened.

###  Chapter Seven

“What is that?” Garrett spoke within seconds of Aro entering the room his dark eyes were trained on the wheelchair as it slid over the wet tiles coming to a stop beside Aro’s seat. 

It was rather delightful to see Garrett so suspicious of an inherently innocent invention and Aro could not fight the broad smile that spread over his face as the merman narrowed his eyes at it.

“It is a chair, like this one, but it has wheels.” Aro lightly tapped the back of the garden chair he had sat in earlier and it wobbled. The legs on those things were always so uneven warping with even the slightest of heat applied to them. “People who cannot walk sit in them so that they can still move about rather than staying stuck in one place.” 

His words didn’t seem to convince Garrett even though he nodded to show he understood the premise. 

“You want to take me outside?” 

At least he had understood the intention but it wasn’t exactly difficult to work out what Aro had intended to use the wheelchair for. 

“Yes, you want to go outside, don’t you?” 

“Well, yes, but not yet.” Aro must have frowned upon hearing this because Garrett looked sheepish at his own answer. “We can go out at any time, can’t we?” When he ventured this question Aro felt his resolve to get him in the chair melt away and he found himself nodding. 

“I suppose, yes.” 

The wheelchair was discarded and forgotten for a moment, there was no real hurry to get Garrett outside and instead, Aro found his way back to his original seat on the edge of the pool with his boots submerged once again. 

“What if I got in with you?” Aro tested but he kept his eyes on Garrett’s expression watching for any minute change but he only saw a devious grin spread over the merman’s lips revealing those dagger-sharp teeth that he had come to rather like. “Are you going to try and eat me again?” 

“You fell in earlier, I did not hurt you then…” His words combined with the shrug he received from Garrett was casual and not at all comforting or convincing but after a moment he laughed and moved back allowing Aro to remove his boots. He watched with great interest as he slipped his feet into the cold water.

A shiver ran over his skin at the cold but said nothing about it, though he did draw his foot back in a flash when Garrett moved forward and poked very gently at the sole of his foot. The tickling sensation caused him to laugh as he withdrew from the water and Garrett zipped forward grabbing Aro’s legs again as though intending to tug him back in.

Instead, he smoothed his hands up Aro’s calves and marvelled at their shape, the wide-eyed wonder giving him an almost childlike appearance for a split second and it endeared Garrett to Aro a little more. 

“You may have seen legs before but you had no idea how they worked, did you?” he tensed the muscles in his calves and Garrett let go immediately like a child grabbing something hot with their hands. “I’m sure you have a general idea of how they work but you seemed surprised by the muscles moving.”

“I think I didn’t expect your skin to be so warm and for your legs to be so… strong?” That was fair enough, Aro supposed, he hadn’t exactly expected Garrett’s tail to be strong enough to crush his ribs and yet… 

“Are you really going to get in with me?” Garrett sounded hopeful when he spoke again, as though eager to be given the chance to prove he was trustworthy and that Aro was truly safe with him there. “I won’t swim near you if it helps?” 

It did and it did not. Having Garrett move away only gave his form a more dark and shadowy look under the water and it unnerved Aro when dark shapes darted by him in the seas and lakes at the best of times. 

“Is it safe with your ribs like that?” Ah, yes, Carlisle had confirmed they were broken when he had come by but had the good grace not to overreact when he had heard how it happened and only gave instruction on how to ensure they healed properly.

“I will be fine as long as I do what my doctor says,” Aro mumbled as he busied himself with edging closer to the side of the pool and lowering himself in. His shirt clung to him immediately and the cold water caused his skin to prickle over with gooseflesh. He bit back the urge to curse rather violently at the cold but it was soon overrun with the feeling of the merman pressed against him. 

“You’re so warm.” Garrett marvelled as he wrapped his arms around Aro’s middle and hugged him tighter as if he was trying to leach the heat from him. “It’s intoxicating.” The last few words came out as a whisper but it struggled almost not making it past his lips. 

No, no he didn’t like this, or rather he did not like how much he _did_ like it. The sensation of Garrett pressed against him struggling to speak as he buried his nose into the crook of Aro’s neck to breathe in the scent of him, and his blood responded by racing in his veins to further warm his skin. 

“How do humans get anything done when you’re so warm like this?” Garrett seemed so far away when he spoke as he got drunk on the warmth of Aro’s skin. His clawed hands gently slid to Aro’s hips and pressed into the bone there to root him to the spot and Aro responded with an almost breathy gasp that pleased Garrett.

With a contented hum, he pressed a kiss to Aro’s exposed neck, then another just behind his ear before he angled his head pressed a kiss over Aro’s soft pink lips, his cold tongue pressing against Aro’s. 

They shared a sound of appreciation and relief. This was the tension that had built up between them but it became apparent neither of them had experienced sexual attraction until they had met one another. 

Slowly, Garrett guided Aro backwards through the water until his back met with the hard wall of the pool but he didn’t truly register it and instead he lifted his legs to wrap around Garrett’s waist and pulled him in tighter. 

Eventually, Aro had to pull away from the kiss to breathe but as soon as he managed a lungful of air Garrett pressed another deep and insistent kiss to his lips and they soon realised they wanted more and a heated kiss driven by lust was not going to be enough. 

When Aro came to his senses almost a full minute later he felt fear for the first time. If he was truthful he hoped that Garrett’s knowledge of human anatomy was not up to scratch because if it was the merman was not going to expect what he would find next. 

While he had been raised male, he was assigned female at birth, and allowing him to grow up as the person he wanted to be was the only good thing his parents had done for him. But cis-gendered men and trans men did not always have the same parts and this was what Aro was afraid of revealing to Garrett. 

Sensing his unease Garrett shifted back so there was space between them, his slitted pupils were dilated to the point the iris of both eyes were near blotted out and his lips were fuller but Aro did not miss the look of concern he was now graced with. 

“I want you. No, it is more than want, it is a need… it is just,” He trailed off hesitant to further explain and hoping the silence would allow him time to find words that would make sense to Garrett. 

Did the merfolk have instances such as these? 

“What do you know of human men and women?” 

“Virtually nothing.” The answer was so quick and Aro was unsure if it was genuine or if lust was fogging Garrett’s brain but surely he would not lie? 

But hadn’t he already said he had lied to Aro, possibly from the beginning? He would have to just let it wash over him and let the moment they were in take precedent in his mind instead. 

“You know nothing of how we reproduce?” When Garrett shook his head he looked embarrassed at the fact and his gaze darted to the side to break the eye contact they shared. 

“Nothing, I have wanted to ask but is that not inappropriate?” 

“You think this is not?”

“Ah, well, I suppose. Are you concerned we are not compatible?” Yes, that was exactly it amongst other fears but the way Garrett had questioned him made him wonder if Garrett was actually worried about the same thing. 

He did not appear to be overly concerned. 

“I don’t want to be having this conversation. I want… to be doing something far more enjoyable.” 

“Why don’t you lead the way and I shall follow?” How tender Garrett had sounded as he spoke at that moment. He could probably sense the fear under the desperate arousal and wanted to put him at ease. 

It was appreciated. 

“My issue is that your hands are not compatible with what we may do.” At the mention of Garrett’s claws, the merman lifted them from the water and they both watched as the dangerous appendages shrank into a more blunt and human shape. 

Aro was not going to ask how he did that and why he only offered to do it now of all times, for now, he was just happy he would not be torn to shreds in a fit of passion. 

With that in mind, he beckoned for Garrett to move closer again and they resumed where they had left off moments before. He wrapped his legs around Garrett’s waist and dragged him closer so they were chest to chest. 

The icy cold feeling of Garrett’s tongue did not bother him when he had consented to it being thrust into his mouth, it felt good against the heat of his own. The only other issue was the teeth. His lips would be badly bruised and cut but that was a problem for later. 

For now, he could handle it as long as Garrett kept rolling his hips the way he was. 

A yelp escaped him when Garrett broke the kiss and lifted Aro to sit on the edge of the pool while he went to work tugging off the soaked trousers clinging to his legs and tossing them behind him where they hit the surface of the water with a dull splash. 

“I thought I was done removing cloth from you?” Garrett tugged at the waistband of Aro’s underwear before offering up the most unimpressed look Aro had ever seen. Rolling his eyes he shimmied out of the underwear and left them on the side of the pool where they had absolutely no hope of drying out. 

Before he could move or speak Garrett had placed his now, less lethal, hands on Aro’s knees and spread his legs wide displaying just exactly what he had been looking for. Garrett gave a purr of delight, Aro did not do the same. 

Being exposed in such a way was actually mortifying and Aro tried his best to hide his face behind his hands as he lay back on the cold tiles that were not nearly as cold as the water had been but was not totally comfortable. 

“Please don’t stare at me like that.” 

There was no response but the pad of Garrett’s thumb did come to rest on Aro’s enlarged clitoris and he rubbed it gently, only continuing with more enthusiasm when Aro moaned into his hands still pressed over his face. 

“This part of you is on fire.” It wasn’t teasing but rather awe-filled as he continued to rub small circles over the sensitive part watching his host come undone with relative ease. The hands that had covered Aro’s face had moved. He had covered his mouth with the back of one hand while the other was tangled in his own hair in the vain attempt at stifling the moans that spilt from bruised lips with abandon. 

“The sounds you make, is this your siren song, are you calling for a mate?” This time Garrett did tease but his apology was to move faster for a moment before taking the plunge and exploring further, a finger slid into the wet tight heat and he was rewarded with a more intense moan from Aro along with bucking hips that only calmed after a few moments. 

When the finger withdrew Aro raised himself up on his elbows and watched as Garrett moved away from him for a moment. The merman darted towards where the steps led out of the pool and dragged himself up to the first few where the water was at its shallowest. 

“Come lay here with me.” He called from the new spot and Aro, albeit on unsteady legs, did as he was told and joined the merman on the steps of the shallows. 

Feeling exposed and now quite coy, he placed himself on the step in the sitting position with his hands clasped together and rested on his thighs. It wasn’t that he did not wish to continue but the sudden realisation that he was going to let the merman, that tried to kill him, fuck him in the swimming pool was a bit too much to digest. He needed a moment to come to terms with the fact his life had been turned upside down and all his rational thought had fled. 

“Aro, give me your siren call. Let me hear it again.” _Oh. That was the first time he’s used my name since we met…_ it meant something but Aro was not yet sure what but it felt important. “Are you now shy?” The question was ridiculous because of course, he was! 

“Don’t tease me.” The whine in his voice was so unlike him but Garrett seemed to draw out the more childish part of him and while he was unimpressed by this he could tell Garrett quite enjoyed it and realised it was a power he could use against him later most likely. 

He really wished they were doing this in a bed. 

Obviously, the lack of a bed didn’t bother Garrett and he slid a hand between Aro’s thighs nudging them open again, giving a pleased ‘hmm’ when they fell open with ease and he was able to access that which he seemed to covet with a degree of need Aro hadn’t expected from him. 

“The warmth is so addicting.” Garrett mumbled as he watched one of his long fingers slide inside once again, “And you are so accommodating, sweet one.” Oh, that term of endearment certainly unlocked something because Aro felt himself get wetter and he clenched around the single digit desperate for friction. 

It wasn’t enough he needed something more and, as though broadcasting his desires telepathically, he was gifted with a second finger which slid in just as easily as the first and he turned his head to the side, his hand covering his mouth as he groaned. 

“Your skin flushes so easily, you remind me of a pretty little thing that lives amongst the coral,” Garrett adds another finger as he speaks and the feeling of being filled drags another moan out of Aro while the merman puffs out his chest with pride. “Don’t stifle these sounds.” 

His mind is a jumble and all he can think of is the pleasure sliding through his veins while his nerve endings sizzle and lascivious mewls pour from his lips. At that point, he felt incapable of words but he wanted to ask for more and more and more! 

It seemed Garrett had figured out that they were definitely compatible as he lay on his side sliding his fingers in and out of Aro steadily while his host writhed and moaned in relative ecstasy, and it was a sight to behold, so much so he himself was aroused. 

His cock was unsheathed now and clearly visible, it throbbed when Aro clenched down on Garrett’s fingers and strained against the merman’s stomach heavy and sticky and ready to join in the fun. 

The second time Garrett withdrew his fingers Aro complained with a whimper but was soon shushed with a deep kiss as Garrett pulled himself on top of him and slowly slid his thick cock against Aro’s dripping wet entrance. 

The shiver that ran through Aro was immense and for a second it cleared his mind of the lusty fog that had clouded his rational thought. It was dangerous for him to do this with Garrett but at the same time this was the most affection he’d had in a long time and it would seem a shame to waste it by thinking morally of the situation. 

Plus it was quite a sight to see Garrett above him with only his arms holding him up, the sheer strength of the merman was astounding and very attractive. 

Rather than consenting with words Aro opened his legs wider and shuffled forward slightly so that the head of Garrett’s cock nudged at his hole giving the merman all the clearance he needed to fill him up. 

Once he was fully sheathed inside the warmth Garrett stilled for a moment to regain some composure from the sheer earth-shaking feeling of being held so tightly in the wet heat between Aro’s thighs. After a short while, he wrapped his arms around Aro and rolled them so that he lay on his back and Aro was now sitting above him pushing Garrett’s cock deeper inside. 

One hand held Aro steady, the other gently and teasingly tweaked his enlarged clitoris causing Aro to buck his hips violently once before he slapped Garrett’s hand away and allowed it to come to rest on his hip as the other had done before. 

Riding Garrett was an experience and he did not hold back his moans as he rolled his hips over and over alternating between bouncing up and down and squeezing the shaft. Garrett’s groans were more animalistic and it spurred Aro on to bounce on the solid member clenching around him until he felt Garrett’s body tense. 

“Come inside me, fill me up, Garrett. Claim me.” It was all incredibly salacious but Aro was passed caring now and all he wanted was the feeling of something stretching him open and filling him up. 

When Garrett came Aro followed swiftly after but he did not stop riding the still hard length even as it pumped load after load into Aro who could only gasp and moan at the sensation. Even as he felt the come leaking out of him leaving his thighs and Garrett’s hips sticky he still rolled his hips squeezing every last drop out of the merman beneath him. 

“You’ll make me come again,” It didn’t sound like a complaint because when Aro considered easing up, Garrett dug his fingers into his hips and held him down as he raised his own hips in time with Aro’s movements. 

When Garrett’s grip lessened Aro raised himself up off the length and felt the come slowly dripping out of him, it felt so good to have been used like that and so, to return the favour he shifted on his knees to the side of Garrett and leaned down taking the entire length in his mouth as Garrett came again down his throat. 

The hot thick strings of semen hitting the back of his throat made his eyes flutter and his body quivered as he came without being touched. If this was what they ended up doing all night he was absolutely fine with that. 

As he began to pull away he felt Garrett rest a hand on the back of his head and push him back down onto his length. It slid into this throat as Garrett fucked into his hot and sticky mouth until he came again twice. 

It seemed never-ending but each time Garrett came, Aro did too, the heat between his legs was nothing but a drooling mess and he so desperately wanted to be filled again. 

He was released eventually and he was able to sit up and reacquaint himself with oxygen.

Every inch of his skin was flushed and felt almost proud of what he had managed and alarmed that he still wanted more. His hands slid to the folds of his pussy and he teased at his clit gently tugging at it closing his eyes as he did so. 

“You’re still not done?” There was no surprised tone from Garrett, he merely seemed understanding as though he too were in the same boat. Aro opened his eyes and turned his head to watch Garrett lie back with his head on the first step that led down into the water. 

“Come sit here and let me taste you.” Garrett gestured to his face and Aro wasted no time in doing as he was told. His knees came to rest at either side of Garrett’s head and he felt the serpent-like split tongue slide up to his clit before it was gently taken into the merman’s mouth and sucked until it was almost rigid like Garrett’s cock which he was stroking while he toyed with Aro. 

“You taste sweet and I think I might have fallen in love with human anatomy.” This was all he said before he shoved his tongue into Aro’s pussy and fucked him with his tongue. He kept going until Aro was a mess of panting and begging and he did not stop until Aro came several times.

When he was finally released from the delicious torture Aro could only shakily slid to Garret’s side and close his eyes. For a long while they both lay on the steps in the shallows trying to regain their energy and all Aro wanted now was to sleep. 

It was difficult to find a comfortable position to lie when the cold hard tiled steps dug into his back. A hand was gently placed on his stomach and he was coaxed toward Garrett until he lay practically on top of him. 

Any ideas of taking Garrett out into the world were dashed because he was positive that if he tried to stand up his legs would absolutely not work. 

"Shouldn't you be resting somewhere warm and dry?" For Garrett to still want to be close to him was surprising but he found he couldn't say anything aloud, not from fear but from exhaustion. 

"Yes, but you try walking on these legs after what you did to me." The words came out slowly like he was reacquainting himself to the language and Garrett nudged him until he sat up.

"Go to bed." This caring and gentle side of Garrett was fast becoming Aro's favourite though he did miss the sarcasm just a little bit. That little snarking spark between them was enjoyable and kept him on his toes, as much as he had originally disliked it. 

With a nod he shakily got to his feet, his soaking wet shirt still clung to his chest and, by the gods, it was freezing as he tried to peel it away. 

There was no need for him to collect his clothes and so instead he padded out on bare feet deeply appreciating the rug that lay halfway up the hallway. 

There was no recollection of him getting to his room and sleeping but when he woke several hours later the sun had begun to set and golden light streamed in through the window. All he could hear the cry of gulls as they sailed on a light breeze and the crash of the waves on the beach in the distance. 

All in all, it was a comforting moment yet something was missing. 

Of course, he knew what it was and a ghostly ache of longing swirled inside of him with the threat of budding into something more intense. 

The time for their fun was over, it seemed, and Aro was determined to get answers to his questions regardless of how uncomfortable it made either of them. Tomorrow he would help Garrett to the lake and they would talk no matter how many hours it took to coax the words from the merman they would get to the bottom of whatever it was he was hiding. 

Now if he could just switch off his feelings for him, everything would be marginally better.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro gives Garrett his first taste of the outside world in a way he has never experienced before, and Garrett opens up and allows a further glance at his world under the sea.

###  Chapter Eight

Sleep took Aro again and when he woke he was greeted with the pale blue of the morning sky. Blinking the sleep from his eyes he glanced at the clock and sighed when it showed 5am, not terrible but still so early and Aro was truly loathed to roll out of bed at such an hour. 

It was better than waking in the dead of night or midafternoon and he had high hopes for his sleep schedule being back on track after a hectic few days of sleeping only when at the point of sheer exhaustion. 

The familiar sound of Garrett’s siren call roused him better than any alarm clock and with a yawn, Aro tossed the bedsheets from over him and climbed out of bed. He was in desperate need of a shower and slowly made his way to the bathroom to clean himself up before getting dressed.

Food would be next on the list, although he’d have to check if there was anything substantial for Garrett in the pantry or the fridge, he didn’t hold out too much hope but he couldn’t let the man starve either. 

The allure of the hot shower was too much and Aro found himself stood under the spray of water for far longer than he intended. It gave him time to pause and take in the events that had unfolded and how he truly felt.

Why had he taken Garrett in from the beginning?

It had been starkly apparent that Garrett wasn’t human from the moment Aro had set eyes on him. Yet he had still endeavoured to help him and heal his wounds without any sort of payment in return.

For the first time in a long time, Aro had acted selflessly and it had landed him in hot water with his own emotions. This was never something he had wanted in his life, to be entangled in messy emotions with someone that could easily vanish without a trace when given the chance. 

While love would have been nice, Aro grew up knowing that he would never have that experience. Watching his parent’s relationship degrade over time only further proved that people didn’t seem all that compatible. 

Generally, he had no grand life plan with goals he dreamed of making a reality. Any daydream he might have had once was washed away with overwhelming logic like waves erasing writing in the sand. 

The world held no allure and he had never felt the call of wanderlust. 

All in all, Aro just wanted to be left alone to be nothing and no one. 

Everything was just easier that way.

So why had he dragged the merman home and why did he continue to keep him there? 

Whatever the answer was to those questions it would have to wait as Garrett’s siren call grew louder essentially putting an end to Aro’s shower. 

In the pool room, Garrett was lounging on the steps of the pool, almost as though he hadn’t moved from the night before, and he graced Aro with a dagger-sharp grin when he saw the man walk in. 

_ Sweet _ That was what he thought when he’d seen Garrett’s face light up at his appearance. Aro had been given more from Garrett than he had ever had from another person, and while things had started out rather prickly between them they’d come further than he had ever imagined they would. 

Had he believed in fate, Aro might have considered it a sign that they had meant to meet but all he felt instead was a horrible ache in his chest because Garrett couldn’t stay there with him. There was nothing they could even do to change that, there was no magic in their world. Garrett wouldn’t suddenly grow legs and Aro couldn’t transform into merfolk to join him in the ocean. 

Who was to say that Garrett even truly cared for him? 

It could just be one-sided. 

It  _ was _ just one-sided but Aro refused to acknowledge that as truth, and he wouldn’t until Garrett was finally gone. 

“You look like you finally rested enough,” Garrett spoke first, he was still smiling but there was concern clear in his eyes. “Are you alright?” 

Whatever Aro had wanted to say, the truth mostly, did not come out and instead, he just nodded and checked the time on the watch he finally remembered to put on. It was nearly 6am and he really wanted to eat something. 

“Shall we have breakfast?” Moving the subject away from Garrett’s question with the mention of food worked well enough and Garrett perked up more so at the thought of eating. “I will have to see what I have available for you… do you always eat so much?” 

There was a pause of silence before Garrett laughed and shook his head, he ran a hand through his almost dry hair and managed to look, somewhat, coy. 

“No, I just needed the energy to heal. I eat small amounts of food but perhaps more often than you would as a human. Walking takes far less energy than swimming does, I imagine.” He was right but Aro just felt relieved that he would be able to give him breakfast without emptying his stores completely. 

They shared breakfast in silence, and Aro took great pleasure in drinking his tea by the patio doors watching the sun fully rise into another beautiful bright clear day. As much as it scared him to take Garrett from the pool, he had made a promise that he would let Garrett go outside and feel the grass and the sun on his skin as any human could with ease. 

Then they would absolutely need to have the conversation they both seemed to be avoiding. 

When was he going to return home?

“You’ve been quiet since you came down here,” Garrett spoke between slow bites of toast, he had eyed it wearily when Aro gave it to him but he seemed to be enjoying it and was savouring the texture as he crunched through 4 slices. “Is something on your mind?”

He owed the truth to Garrett but not yet. Later. 

“I’m just wondering if the sun is up enough for us to go outside today.” He gestured to the blazing blue skies out of the nearest window, his pale hand illuminated by the rays shining down from a spring sun. 

The warmth was barely there but it was enough and Aro felt comforted by the light that poured in. He’d spent so many days in the dark that seeing the sun brought forth joy that he hadn’t felt since he was a child. That joy of seeing the day was a bright one which meant hours of playing outside in a world of his own making. 

“Oh, right, you want to take me out there in that  _ thing _ .” Garrett still seemed suspicious of the wheelchair and he eyed it again with distrust causing Aro to laugh aloud as he got to his feet. 

“It isn’t going to hurt you. Though, I am considering whether you’ll fit in it or not. You’re rather big and this was purchased a while ago for an old man.” With one hand on one of the handles, Aro guided it to the steps where Garrett still lay lounging like some watery Greek God. 

“Come on, let’s try and get you in it.” Aro tried to coax the merman but Garrett didn’t move from his spot. “You’re afraid of this thing but have not been afraid of anything else since you got here?” The question might have goaded an angry response from Garrett if it hadn’t looked as though he was worried about something else. 

Slowly he shook his head and allowed his gaze to slip from the wheelchair to the bright sunny skies with only a pane of glass between it and him. The great blue infinity screaming across his vision. 

“I… won’t fall into that will I?” Aro glanced over to the window and saw only the bright spring day waiting for them both. “The world is so big and I understand the sea is too but you can see where the sea ends but this?” 

It all came to a crashing realisation that, of course, Garrett would be fine inside a house, he could see the ceiling, there was an end to the house. The surface of the sea was the end of the sea but the sky… there was no telling the limit of the sky above. 

No one truly knew where the edge of space was and trying to explain that to Garrett wouldn’t end well. But there was still an eagerness in his voice when asking his questions- he had a thirst for knowledge and a drive to explore but fear of the unknown held him back. 

He was looking for comfort from Aro, an answer that he wasn’t being crazy to worry about falling into the blue abyss. 

“No, you cannot fall into the sky.” Could his heart have swelled more hearing the softness of his own voice when answering the merman, perhaps, but at that moment it felt as though it might burst. 

He loved him, he loved him, he knew that and he hated it. 

“I will not let you fall into the sky. You are safe, I promise.” Reaching out, Aro offers his hand to Garrett indicating that he meant to help him out but Garrett refused it and pulled himself up and onto the cold tiles.

“I can get in myself, I think.” 

“My worry is that you may be too heavy?” They both laugh at this, because, of course, he was heavy. The wheelchair didn’t stand much of a chance and would only survive one trip out into the garden and back into the pool. 

If luck failed to be on their side it meant Aro would have to introduce Garrett to the lake, which ultimately, would be better for him however temporary it was. 

Because after all of this, temporary was all the situation was. To even allow himself the idea of something more permanent was far too fanciful for Aro and bordered on daydreaming. A pastime he hadn’t allowed himself for years because allowing oneself to imagine something better always left the bitter taste of disappointment on his tongue. 

The creak of Garrett’s weight in the wheelchair pulled Aro from his thoughts and he huffed out a laugh at Garrett’s sheer size dwarfing the chair. His tail was wrapped around it so it didn’t trail the floor but he looked uncomfortable trying to fit his bulk in a seat that had once seemed too big with his frail and aged father sat in it. 

“This isn’t going to survive the trip back inside,” Garrett mumbled and when Aro began to push the wheelchair, albeit with great difficulty, Garrett’s entire body seized up and his hands gripped the arms tightly. “Slow down.” 

“I’m barely moving you, I’m sure water currents have dragged you faster than this.” 

“Maybe so but this is all new to me, ok?!” The panicked tone in Garrett’s voice didn’t stop Aro from pushing the chair toward the patio doors but he did give the merman’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. 

They left the pool room with no great fanfare and as they moved into the bright sunshine Garrett threw his head back to gaze up at the blue above him, the intake of air stilled Aro for a moment and he waited for the merman to exhale. 

“I barely get to see the sky like this, you know?” Garrett sounded so far away as he spoke, but Aro could see his eyes, for they were still caught up in the sky, and for the first time he noticed that they were brown, so dark and deep that he could scarcely see where the iris ended and pupil began. “The blue of this, I forget it exists because I live in the dark. I live so far below the surface where sunlight cannot penetrate and when I have to surface it is night and the sky is full of something that sparkles but there isn’t really any light.”

They don’t move for quite some time and Aro remains silent allowing Garrett to drink in a world he may never experience again. 

“Aro, I don’t want to go back to living in the dark. I want to stay here with you.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're outside! 
> 
> However, the conversation gets heavy and Garrett finally reveals all and it perfectly explains why he doesn't want to leave Aro.  
> Sadly, it isn't the declaration of love that one of them was hoping for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this whole chapter in a day! Less than a day! Less than 5 hours! 
> 
> So enjoy! I am already half way through chapter 10 
> 
> byeeee

###  Chapter Nine

_ Aro, I don’t want to go back to living in the dark. I want to stay here with you. _

Aro blinked a few times as he tried to process what Garrett had said but all he could understand was the thunderous beat of his own heart so hard that he felt it in his throat. 

He felt his palms go slick, hands still curled around the rubber covering the handles of the chair, and he released his grip on them suddenly leaving apparent moisture behind and it glittered under the sun in an almost mocking fashion.

“You know you cannot stay here.” Oh no, no he had not meant for it to sound so final but nothing in his head made sense! Everything inside him was a mess, and his heartbeat was still so loud, why was it so loud?! 

“Oh, I see.” The small reply was enough to put Aro in motion and moved around the chair to face Garrett, moving to his knees so that the merman did not need to squint in the sun to look at him. 

“Please give me a moment to still my heart,” He could feel the flush crawling up his cheeks as he looked up at Garrett, the merman’s expression was dull bordering sullen and Aro wanted nothing more than to see him smile again. “I- You took me by surprise. I had in my mind that all you wanted was to return home to the sea, would you not miss that great expanse if you left it behind?” There was no reason for him to put behind him the many times Garrett had demanded to be set free, and the fact he had tried to kill him, well, it had made a very strong case for Garrett wishing to stay. 

So, something had to have changed and recently. 

"Have I not already explained to you that I was alone?" His voice was small when he answered Aro's question, as though embarrassed to admit it. "Maybe I wasn't clear..." This was spoken as more of an afterthought than anything else but Aro wanted to push Garrett to elaborate so with hesitation he asked the merman what he had meant.

"You said that sometimes your kind were born to be in isolation?" He did recall that, hadn't Garrett made it sound like a natural yearning to be alone?

They had jobs and still gave to their society but rather than going home to a family at the end of their day they would... what? Swim off into the dark to sleep alone somewhere?

Did Garrett's people even have homes?

It was then Aro realised he knew almost nothing about Garrett and Garrett knew just as little about him and yet Aro had the gall to claim he was in love with him!

How thankful he was that he did not admit verbally to the merman how he felt towards him. Even if Garrett had expressed a desire to remain with him that did not mean it was love. Companionship was not inherently romantic and Aro knew he should not have ever tried to imagine that it was not when he hadn't experienced romance or love in such a capacity before. How did he know this was not just a close friendship between two men who enjoyed being alone?

_ You literally let him fuck you!  _ Aro scolded himself mentally and once again he felt a flush creep up his cheeks staining his pale skin pink with embarrassment.

He was momentarily distracted as he had to throw his weight behind the wheelchair as it slowed and caught on the grass as they slowly moved towards the lake. It would take some doing and Aro could already feel beads of sweat form on his brow as he struggled. It was going to take all his energy to get Garrett to where he wanted him to be and he cursed his scrawny frame as his muscles burned. His pride would not let him stop and so he pushed on hoping Garrett would not notice.

But the merman was still lost in the sky while ruminating on Aro's question clearly wanting to find the words to explain his life to him.

It wasn't until his legs had begun to shake that Aro had to admit defeat and he stopped allowing himself to flop onto the grass in the spot where moments before he had stood. He lay in the grass still damp with early morning dew and sighed at the coolness of it against his flushed skin. He ached and it was even in a good way like it had been the night before- the very thought of Garrett's weight on top of him caused a small smile to form and he had to stifle the urge to cover his face with his hands as the memory swam to the forefront of his mind.

"Are you alright?" Garrett's panicked voice soon brought him back to the present moment and Aro forced himself to sit up to dispel the warmth spreading through his being. "Are you hurt?" Garrett tried to twist round in the seat but his bulk was for too great to allow much room to move. Their eyes met for a brief moment and Aro believed that perhaps the merman had known what was on his mind, but it was soon dispelled when Garrett sighed looking almost distraught.

"Sorry, but as you can see, I am not the strongest of men or the most solid. Pushing you over bumpy terrain isn't something my body was cut out for. I just need a moment, we are nearly where I want us to be and near a path that is much smoother to navigate." He tried to give Garrett what he thought was a reassuring smile but it didn't seem to ease his worry and instead, he reached out and pulled Aro up onto his lap.

"Rest here a moment, let me tell you about my people."

"Are you safe out of the water like this?"

"Safe as I've ever been, I think."

It felt odd to be sat on the lap of a merman in a wheelchair. A scene that looked frankly comical to Aro and likely to anyone who would happen across them should they trespass on the land.

Instead of declining the offer Aro sat quietly only nodding to assure Garrett that he was ready and willing to listen to his story. A story he had wanted to get out of Garrett since they had met, regardless of how spiky he had been at first in regards to revealing anything about himself.

How far they had come in such a short space of time.

"I should probably preface that being here with you is the safest I have been in my life since I was small." He seemed suddenly articulate as he had been when they'd first met. The casual air that had settled over him was gone and in its place was this tense creature unhappy with the idea of the words he was about to spill to his waiting audience. "I am happier because I've not had to fight for my life as I would have in the ocean."

These were not words that brought any sort of comfort to Aro, and he surely did not feel proud to have brought Garrett home even if he claimed it had saved his life to a degree. Honestly, in his mind, Aro could not shift the feeling of regret that lived inside him since the day he brought him home. While the halls of his home had been empty it had been his choice and while loneliness was his only friend until Garrett had come along he still did not feel good about dragging him from the beach.

Had he changed him so profoundly that he did not wish to return home to the most natural place for him?

Not wanting to interrupt Garrett, Aro remained silent but he could feel the unease coiling up in his stomach and he looked away for a moment chewing his lip with worry as he had done so many times as a youth. A habit he assumed he had grown out of but it did not seem so in that moment. To avoid Garrett's concern about his well being again he looked back to Garrett and offered a soft smile in response to him being happier there with him.

"I am glad you feel happier here," The lie slid from his lips without a seconds hesitation and it felt sour on his tongue. They had gone from enemies to something else entirely in the space of literal days and Aro couldn't sort his thoughts and feelings into something that made sense. because as much as he wanted Garrett to return and be with his own kind he could also feel the screaming need to keep him there with him because he so dearly loved him.

The very idea of being in love for the first time in his life and knowing he would have to let him go...

"Tell me about your people, tell me everything, but let me walk as you talk. I would feel better if we were at least near water should you need it." He slid from Garrett's lap and was relieved when he did not protest. Thankfully he seemed to have recovered easily enough and was ready for the hard slog of pushing the wheelchair toward the lake and to a smoother pathway. "I will repay you by answering any questions you have about myself and the people in this city."

That seemed to have worked because Garrett smiled at him looking rather excited for the opportunity as Aro moved back to his original post at the handles of the chair.

"When we are born we are just like everyone else, aren't we?" Garrett began but he didn't wait for a response before he continued. "We only become ourselves as we grow and learn. For a long time we rely on the knowledge of those that take care of us, a mother or father or whoever it is that becomes the one who raises us. At a certain point, you realise that often times you are not told the truth, or are only given a small part of the truth in a bid to hide something much bigger from you.

I understand why someone would hide the real world from a child up to a certain point but it leaves us blind as we enter adulthood and some of us don't realise we've been fed lies until we see with our own eyes." He paused clearly unhappy with how he had started but he didn't try again he decided to keep going and Aro was already rapt with attention, he had been from the first word.

What was it that bothered Garrett about his own kind?

What had happened?

"Some of us don't get the choice, some of us don't get to decide if we want a solitary life. Some of us have to accept that it is all they are offered in their world."

Choosing to remain silent, Aro continued to force the wheels of the chair over the uneven ground rather than voice any concerns he might have had. To stop Garrett just as he opened up seemed like a step back even if he did believe this would end in disaster for both of them.

"When we're born we are raised the same as everyone else, our needs are met in a way unique to each individual. Once we reach maturity we then are allowed to decide if we want to stay within the fold, move into society with other merfolk or leave for a solitary existence. I believe humans have the same choices, or at least something similar, that's what the sailors said," Garrett seemed to be thinking aloud to himself more than talking to Aro but Aro didn't mind.

It was whatever made him comfortable.

"It took me a long time to realise that the women that raised me were of no relation to me at all. We had no blood ties to keep us together and when I was old enough to leave they seemed eager to push me away. With no social ties within the community, I ended up having to leave my home and learn to live in the dark on my own."

"Wait- you don't know who your parents are?" He hadn't meant to interrupt but Aro couldn't let it go. It sounded like someone hadn't wanted their baby and had palmed him off to someone else to raise until they could get rid of him completely. "Did you ever found out who they were?"

The derisive laugh that Aro had heard before returned and it left him feeling cold and confused.

"I know exactly who and what my parents are and it's why I was, essentially, forced out of society. I think they hoped I would die in the darkness but they just created another type of monster in me." It made sense why Garrett had been so angry and aggressive when they had first met, aside from the fact he believed he had been kidnapped. "I'm a political and biological nightmare. I shouldn't really exist and yet here I am alive... still."

They hit a bump and the chair began to wheel smoothly over sun-warmed flagstones and Aro near cried with relief when his boots hit the concrete, but that didn't mean he hadn't heard what Garrett had said.

"I cannot compare you to other merfolk, I've only ever met you... how are you a nightmare?"

There was a long silence as Aro wheeled Garrett to the walkway by the lake. The sun bounced off the glassy surface of the water and Aro tried to blink away the sunspots from his eyes as he moved round to sit on the bench next to Garrett's chair.

"They said that when I was born I nearly died, they said when I was born I was completely human."


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As much as Aro would have liked to ask Garrett more about his startling revelation, the merman doesn't seem interested.   
> However, it is discovered that Garrett really doesn't like Carlisle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've not updated this quickly in ages but I think I found my flow again. Yeaaahh

###  Chapter Ten

Such a revelation left Aro sitting in stunned silence as he tried to imagine a newborn being delivered completely submerged hundreds of meters below the surface with no hope of filling its tiny lungs. 

Subconsciously he took a deep breath as he tried to relive a moment he was never part of. 

“How did you survive?” 

He could see Garrett was eyeing the lake and was no longer paying attention to the conversation. It wouldn't bother Aro if he wanted to get in and swim, there was an underground stream that connected to a larger set of waterways, eventually, he could find his way back to the sea if he tried hard enough. There was also fish and reeds, better than the pool he had been housed in.

"You can swim if you like, the sun is warm and I am happy to rest here for a while. I brought you here for a reason, and while it might upset you... I thought it would be best to be open about it." This time Garrett looked back at him, his eyes burned with curiosity and distrust for a moment and Aro completely understood why. "The lake is brackish water, it is a mix of fresh and saltwater, I know you know that but still... it is connected to the sea by an underground stream. It means that should you ever want to return home... you can." It seemed awful to tell Garrett that after what the merman had told him on their walk over to the lakeside but he wanted him to know.

Should he ever change his mind, Aro wanted Garrett to know that he was always free to leave.

"Thanks but it isn't necessary to offer me an escape route. I don't want to go back to that place." He looked back to the placid lake and sighed, he clearly longed for the water but he had more to say. "Aro, do you know why I want to stay here with you?" 

He had no idea.

"You feel safe here."

"Yes, but that isn't the only reason."

But it was enough for Aro. Even if Garrett could never love him back, he could at least give him a safe place to live for as long as he needed or wanted it. For as long as he could remember he had been happy to be alone. Happy to haunt the halls of his own home like a ghost unseen by anyone aside from those brave enough to visit on the extremely rare occasion that they did.

When he found Garrett on his morning walk on that fateful day, he had no idea what was going to happen because in his mind he had found a creature in need and the most logical thing for him to do was to help said creature. There had never been the thought that perhaps the man he had hauled up off the beach would want to stay. If he was being honest he didn't even think he would have been able to help and yet Garrett was alive and well and... asking to live there with him.

"Why do you want to stay here then?” Aro wasn't sure he would get an answer right away but that was fair enough. He had brought him to water and, of course, he would want to swim. "You can tell me more about this later, let me move you closer to the edge of the lake instead." The Volturi mansion had been built in that particular spot because of the large lake that had come with the land, it would have provided them with food and, at a push, water once upon a time. Though Aro couldn't imagine brackish water being good for anything other than swimming and fishing.

Once Garrett was in the water he essentially vanished.

Aro retook his seat on the bench and closed his eyes as he exhaled long and hard until there didn't feel like a single breath was left within his lungs. Everything he had heard felt like too much, far too much, much too much and yet there was still so much mystery concerning his new lodger. If Garrett was born a human was it possible that he could become one again?

As nice as it would be for Garrett to be a human once again, he truly had no experience of it and wishing for him to be something other than what he was felt disrespectful and even hurtful. Unless... that was why Garrett wanted to remain on land because he assumed that the longer he stayed with another human the more likely he would work out how to become one again? 

"There is no need to change yourself for me, even if it is not for me... why be something you've no experience of?" His voice a hoarse whisper as he spoke to no one in particular. One of the few benefits of living alone meant he was always able to talk aloud about his own thoughts without another body overhearing him. If Garrett stayed that wouldn't matter especially if he lived out in the lake away from the mansion but deep down Aro didn't feel all too happy with leaving him outside.

It would have made no difference to Garrett but Aro had grown accustomed already to having him in the pool room. The issue was that Aro just didn't have the energy and it would be most outrageous to bring Garrett back and forth each day just for the company for himself. Even if Garrett agreed, Aro would not be able to do that each day he just wasn't physically strong enough to manage such an arduous task, and even thinking of it made him tired.

When Garrett resurfaced twenty minutes later he looked refreshed and almost glowing.

Aro figured he must have eaten while inspecting his new home.

Garrett swam to the edge of the lake and rested his arms on the grassy ledge looking up at Aro with his usual jagged smile. 

It sent an odd shiver down Aro's spine, one of fear and, strangely, lust. What would it have felt like to be properly bitten by the merman? 

The idea of being prey to the man smiling up at him was odd now that they had spoken enough to find a closeness between them. Now that he had earned his trust Aro wanted to keep it, there was something precious about knowing he held something so important.

"I want to stay with you because regardless of what I am you cared about me. You cared enough to bring me here and clean my wounds and feed me. You saw I wasn't human and still you thought to help me, my kind would not have even looked at you twice if they found you floating and starving to death." The last part of his sentence came forth with a hint of shame and Garrett averted his eyes momentarily in a silent apology but Aro just laughed aloud.

"But what could your kind have done for me had they found me starving in the middle of the ocean?" He could not help but let slip another soft laugh as he moved from his seat on the bench getting to his feet to close the distance between himself and Garrett somewhat. "We are from very different worlds. What would be the norm here would be out of the ordinary for you and that is alright." He sat cross-legged in the grass enjoying the feeling of the light breeze as it danced over his, still overheated, skin.

As much as he would like to question Garrett on his decision to stay, while he would like to explain away his kindness and how it couldn't and shouldn't be a reason to stay, Aro refrained and instead remained silent. There would be time for such a debate later- for now they needed to understand the logistics of keeping the merman safe and comfortable for the time being. They needed to work out a system or Aro needed to contact some builders and remodel the pool in a way that allowed Garrett to move freely between the indoor pool and the lake with little effort.

Startled by his own thoughts of changing so much for Garrett, Aro had to take a moment to compose himself because he was moving too fast for himself to keep up. If he was willing to do such a thing... then shouldn't he at least tell Garrett he felt?

They might have only slept together once but Aro could see what kind of person Garrett was and he liked it. The person he had come to know was funny and sweet and intelligent, but even after all that Aro was scared to admit to himself that it could just have been that he was achingly lonely and Garrett had been the first person he'd spent any measure of time with since his father had died.

"You're right, I suppose. We would likely have eaten you had you died..." The grin again and Aro felt his heart flutter at it, the true danger of those razor-sharp teeth ever-present but it thrilled him to the very core.

"Aha, well, no one would miss me if I did get lost at sea so It wouldn't be so bad." As funny Aro had found it he knew it was self-deprecating and he caught Garrett's frown almost immediately but he was relived, at least, to see that it was curiosity rather than the start of an admonition from the merman.

He watched as Garrett cocked his head to the side with a furrowed brow as he silently asked Aro to explain himself.

"Hmm, I only meant to make a joke but I should explain that I am truly alone here. I said it before but perhaps because of the appearance of Carlisle you did not believe me?" He heard a disapproving growl from Garrett's direction and Aro tried to hide his smile as something akin to pleasure bloomed under his skin. "No need to be so testy, I rarely see him. Are you jealous of him?" He hadn't truly meant to ask such a question but it had been on the tip of his tongue and rather than stifling it he let it drop into the air.

Honestly, he was curious to see Garrett's reaction and it was the perfect test to see where they were on the scale of feelings as individuals.

He heard Garrett growl again and the perverse joy once again pulsed through his being.

"I don't like him and I don't want to see him again." The response was rough almost guttural and in a flash, Garrett was clawing at the edge of the lake reaching for Aro. There was no anger directed toward him and to soothe the merman he reached out and let Garrett drag him into the now murky ice-cold water. In an instant, he was crushed against Garrett's cold chest, lips pressed against his in a searing kiss leaving Aro ignorant of the growing cold that seeped into his bones. "I will never stop him from coming to the house, but I abhor him and do not trust him." The words were snarled against Aro's neck and he felt the dagger-sharp teeth graze his skin and a debauched moan that rolled from his throat and past his lips and was his only assent.

Claws trailed down his stomach and Aro's hips jerked backwards at the feeling, whatever he had wanted to say to calm Garrett had dissipated completely and he could only cry out in surprise as he felt a hand slid into his pants. There was a moment where Garrett stilled before resuming his ministrations and now fingers with blunted nail rubbed slow circles over Aro's clit.

"Is it too much that I want to possess every inch of your skin with my lips to prove to you that we belong together?" Garrett sounded calmer now as he spoke, his voice a soft whisper as he pressed kisses down Aro's neck to his collarbone. "If I frightened you, I am sorry. I am so overwhelmed with need- it is jealousy when you mention him. I hate him, I hate the gentle tone he uses when he speaks to you and how he is allowed to see your body." How the truth seemed to pour out of the merman through his anger and lust. The honesty was a surprise and how earnest it had been but the admission had no place in a moment of passion but Aro accepted his words and pulled him into a kiss.

"You must work on your jealousy of... ah... Carlisle. He's... hah-! He's my doctor he needs to see parts of me to heal me when I am sick or injured... ah-!" The words tumbled from his mouth inelegantly as he tried to lift the fog of lust that obscured his rational thought. As he tried to separate himself from the intense pleasure he was taken off guard as Garrett slid his index and middle finger inside him without warning. All attempts of conversation were lost as the merman teased and toyed with him until he came hard biting into the pad of his hand to silence himself.

After a moment, Aro found his words and his strength as he slapped at Garrett’s chest, it was light and done in a way someone would jokingly bat at another when half-heartedly telling them off. 

“You have got to  _ stop _ dragging me into the water while I’m still fully clothed.” 

Another sharp grin was offered from Garrett before he leaned in to press light kisses over Aro’s face. 

“I’ll think about it.” 


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro is plagued by many conflicting thoughts and in a bid to silence the rush he says something he very truly regrets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not the last chapter I promise.

###  Chapter Eleven

They had shared something soft afterwards, even when Garrett had pressed himself against Aro and nipped at his neck asking silently for more.

Climbing out of the lake had been an ordeal all on its own with his legs like jelly and with his hair plastered to his face, he must have looked a sight. His own version of a sea monster emerging from the waters.

Aro could not turn him away and felt as though he would never turn him away. In his heart, Garrett was something special and even as unease filled the pit of his stomach he could not ignore the feelings that flared in his chest as Garrett muttered in his ear all the things he wanted to do to him until he was screaming, and exhausted.

Even so, Aro felt something more beneath those words, an insistent need to speak on something deeper and more meaningful than just salacious and debauched need based on animal lust. He would wait patiently for Garrett to come to him and speak plainly and he would not be upset if he was bold or frank with his words. If Garrett felt the same as he did then there would be no issues... aside from the physical problem of Garrett is now stuck in the lake while Aro was holed up in the Volturi mansion unable to hear his call through the shuttered windows.

The unease was that Garrett did not feel the same. The unease was the worry that Garrett would take what he wanted and leave should he grow tired of him.

But they would spend their time outside for now, as spring was there, it was making itself known in the bird song and the subtle fragrance of spring-blooming flowers that drifted in on the cold yet light breeze still scenting of salt and sea. The ever-present reminder that the vast expanse of water lay just beyond his home. Would the call of the sea bring Garrett back to himself and would he decide one day that the human world truly had no place for him in it?

If that moment should come Aro wasn't sure he'd be able to let him go. He wasn't sure if could bring himself to say goodbye and if he did would he survive his first heartbreak?

He, with no friends and no family nearby to comfort him, in something he had only just experienced... it left him feeling cold and felt an involuntary shiver run down his spine. The chill of his soaking wet clothes that clung to him like to ice against his skin did not help matters, the sun still not yet warm enough to dry or warm him.

Garrett watched him with curiosity clear in his expression, he watched him closely and for a moment it felt as though the man could read his mind.

If he could Garrett never let on that he was capable and never give away if he was listening.

No, perhaps that was too much fantasy, a magical sea creature falling in love with him, it was too farfetched and far too like the fairy stories he had read as a child. The tragedy is that he already understood that this would not end well just like the book, and Aro wondered if whoever wrote the fate of his life was mocking him and toying with him?

How they had let him feel so strongly for someone who would ultimately wish to be returned to the sea and never see him again.

Even after Garrett had told him he wished to stay it was hard to believe him. The freedom of the sea was something that was not only alluring to animals but man too. How many men had set sail on those waves and felt their heartbeat in tandem with the rocking of the ship as the gulls screamed above them? The world was one thing but the sea was still yet undiscovered and their dreams of finding ancient land or terrible sea creatures were realised as soon as their feet hit the deck.

Aro didn't envy that call to the sea, he had never felt the call of anything.

Until Garrett came along he didn't think he could really feel, or at least, not like how some feel.

Not like he had heard other people explain.

There was a time he thought perhaps he was not interested in love and the intimacy it brought but he knew that was just his loneliness numbing him to his wants and needs.

Carlisle had said he wanted Aro to get out more, but where would he have gone? There was no one who could take him on any sort of adventure on land or sea.

His world was made up of acquaintances and that was it, how did you become a friend of someone?

Aro had only ever worked for the people that visited his home, he had never crossed the line of accountant and client and he likely never would.

Well, maybe he would one day if he could keep Garrett... if he could have Garrett the way others had their loved ones.

It was a pipe dream, something to idolise when his mood was low and he was looking for something fanciful to imagine. It would never come to fruition but sometimes a dream could keep someone going and in this case, it would allow Aro a small piece of joy in his otherwise dull and colourless life.

"You get lost inside your own head a lot, I can see it now. You're thinking and dreaming and when you come to a realisation you become sad. What are you thinking of now?" Ah, there it was, the confirmation that the man could not read his innermost thoughts but he didn't have to because Aro wore it clear on his face.

Being alone for so long he forgot that his expressions mattered in company.

"What is making you look so forlorn?" Garrett coaxed again, his hair was dry now and it ruffled gently in the light breeze. He seemed to glow leaning against the muddy edge of the lake uncaring of the dirt-smeared up his arms, unable to find a care for the bulrushes that swayed in and out of his vision. "Talk to me, you have revealed so little of your thoughts to me and yet I spilled my guts to you under this terrifying and endless sky. Show me something of you Aro that even I cannot find under your clothes. Show me something that lives under your skin." There it was that something that seemed deeper than just sex and lust and want and need. 

It was something so much more, the openness of requesting a private part of Aro, the innermost thoughts that most would hide away.

"I suppose there's nothing for it, I must be truthful with you because it is now or never." A cliche to say such a thing but never had it more true than it was now as he uttered the words through a shiver. The air warming but the breeze was still chilling as it came inland from the ocean. "But let me get changed and dried. Will you be ok here alone?"

His reply was a scoff before a splash and Garrett disappeared below the surface of the lake spraying Aro with water as he did so. It was a show, something playful to comfort Aro in whatever it was that plagued his mind and it was appreciated.

When he stepped into the pool room he could hear the shrill call of his telephone in the study. He almost never received calls... but it might have been a client and so he hurried down the hall trailing water over the plush carpet as he did so.

It had been a client desperate to see him and Aro had obliged.

Hurrying now to dry and dress in time for his client Aro ran up the stairs almost two at a time and in doing so left himself breathless for it.

It took several attempts to get his shirt on the right way in his haste and he tripped over his boots twice trying to pull dry trousers on over cold, wet skin. It was all in all a terrible experience but it was a decent distraction from the conversation he was to have with Garrett at some point.

There was a moment wherein he realised that, if Garrett did remain with him in the house, people would eventually find him or discover him. There was many a time he'd see the townsfolk using his lake to fish in the early hours of a summer morning- which he never begrudged them of- it wasn't as though he fished in the lake at all. But it did prove a problem for the future.

Another thing he needed to consider.

There was so much... too much?

Just as he was tying his hair back in a loose braid to get the damp strands off his face the doorbell chimed its ominous song and Aro had to hotfoot it down the stairs looking less than put together and seeming somewhat dishevelled. 

"My, Aro, don't you look well!" His client offered him a genuine smile as he stepped aside to let her in. "I've not seen such colour in your cheeks before. You seem to be in excellent health." It was definitely a compliment and, of course, comment on his demeanour from previous visits.

While he had never worried what people thought of him, not truly, it was nice to hear something pleasant about himself.

"A few things have changed recently that requires me to be on my toes far more than normal." Was all he said but even his cheery tone took her aback but brought forth another smile from his guest as he led her to his study. "I shall bring tea, it sounds like we might have to spend some time on this."

When she left the time had truly moved on and the sun was high in the sky beaming down over the grounds as he stepped out of the patio doors and headed back towards the lake. He saw no sight of Garrett and took a seat at the bench and surveyed the still surface that appeared like glass now that the breeze had all but died out.

He waited a long time before taking matters into his own hands as he scooped up a few pebbles and tossed them into the lake. Moments later, a bleary-eyed Garrett appeared with reeds in his hair and he swam slowly to the edge of the lake still yawning as he leaned against the edge, again letting the semi-dried out dirt smudge up his arms.

Aro wanted to pave the edge of the lake simply to keep Garrett clean but it seemed the merman cared not for the first or even the reeds in his hair, but being as fussy as he was, Aro got up from his seat and wandered over to the lake leaning down to pluck the wet foliage from Garrett's sleepy head.

"I'm sorry I took so long to return. My work reared its head and I must always respond when called for such things."

"And I thought it was because you were scared about our conversation, you were so deep inside yourself earlier that I thought it was a difficult subject to broach." Garrett stifled a yawn again gave Aro a sleepy wink to show he was joking, but he had been right, even if Aro didn't admit it, the merman was dead on.

"Sadly work called and I had to answer. However, you should have me to yourself for the rest of the day." He didn't want verbally acknowledge what Garrett had said but he was terrified that if they truly open a dialogue about what bothered him it would hurt and he wasn't ready to be that vulnerable around Garrett even if the merman had been the one to first open up about his fears. As much as Aro knew Garrett deserved the same in return he couldn't bring himself to try yet.

However, if he forced his hand Aro had his answer ready on the tip of his tongue.

Something in him forced the words to fall from his mouth and in a moment of madness, Aro revealed what he wanted to say. It slipped out before he could regain control of his senses. 

"Garrett, there is no place for you here, the space here is not for something as magical as you. I love you, I am in love with you to the depths of my very soul, in a way I have not ever felt in my entire existence, but you cannot stay here. Something as fantastical as you cannot thrive or flourish in the lake when you've had the ocean as your home for as long as you have." He wasn’t sure why he said it and he could feel his heart thudding so hard in his chest that it hurt and he could feel tears forming in the corners of his eyes. It had been a mistake, a second of complete and utter failure to control his impulses and now his was allowing whatever world he had built fall down around him. 

There was a long moment of silence where Garrett stared down at the water rather than looking up at Aro but very quietly he responded. 

“If that is what you want, I will go.” 

“I’m sorry, Garrett. I’m sorry… but-” He stopped what more could he have said that wouldn’t make the moment worse? 

“I understand, Aro, but I’ll miss you.” Still, Garrett refused to look up at him and in a bid to save his failing composure Aro turned and walked away from the lake and away from Garrett, 

A splash was heard and something akin to a howl of pain that caused Aro to pause and turn on his heel back to the lake but there was no one there now. Garrett had thrown himself below the surface and was likely already racing back toward the sea.

And there he was again, alone as he had been once before and he would always remain. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath and how one mistake can change everything with such swiftness it leaves Aro with whiplash.   
> Carlisle drops by and Aro really isn't up to guests.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I listened to so much classic happy hardcore while writing this lmao I dunno how it came out so emotional.

###  Chapter Twelve

He had promised himself not to count the days.

There was no sense in recalling how long it had been since he had last seen Garrett and yet he made no such promise in staying away from the lake. When he found himself standing there watching the still waters ripple in the breeze trying to still his heart from the betraying flutter it gave with each of those ripples that Garrett might surface again.

And while the halls had always been empty save when he haunted them himself, the whole place felt emptier.

It all seemed ridiculous, but in stark moments when Aro seemed to return to himself, he would scoff at his aching heart and force it to hurry along in mending the cracks within it. The softer side of him would refrain from clutching at his chest and instead would remain silent. There was no need to be at odds with himself over something he decided fully on his own.

_ But he didn't fight to stay, Aro. You told him to go and he did. Is that not the mark of a man that wished for freedom but stayed only to repay a debt owed?  _ Thoughts conspired nightly, the moon streaming in through windows unshuttered giving him a small sense of still being alive and awake. The illusion that he was living and that he only woke from an errant gull cry as it sailed over the roof above his bed, and not that he had left himself exhausted yet wired trying to recall the feeling of Garrett's claws gently grazing over his skin in a way so intimate that it could have killed Aro on the spot.

There had always been the cliched saying that love hurt, and Aro had imagined it was something harsh and sudden, something quick that left an aftermath of a thrumming heat that would die out like a burn but it was not. Love hurt and it was a lingering ache that hung in the air and it filled his lungs as he breathed in gasped breaths trying to calm a stuttering sob that choked out into a keen of pain sharp like a blade turned to his own skin.

_ We don't cry over men, Aro. We don't cry for anyone.  _ The voice of his father from what seemed like ancient memories echoed in his mind, what had felt like an admonishment unrelenting and cold now seemed tinged with empathy and warning that his teenage self would never have caught in his emotional outbursts.

It had never occurred to him that his father was not telling him not to cry- he had cried many times in front of his father, no, this had been a lesson to never let tears fall for someone who wasn't worth it.

Garrett was.

Even if Carlisle was hesitant and even if his father would have disagreed until he was blue in the face, Garrett had most definitely been worth it.

Being alone again should have been a relief but now it only reminded him of what he no longer had, what he could have had.

There would have been difficulties but Aro had already agreed he was fine to change so much about his world so that Garrett would fit in it.

That didn't matter now, because it had been 51 days, 12 hours, 48 minutes since he had pushed Garrett away and told him to leave. All that time and not once had he even caught a glimpse of the merman that had captured his soul and dragged it out of him with no intention of returning it.

"When did I become so damned dramatic?" Aro whispered to himself as he pulled himself from his bed for the second time that night. On bare feet, he padded over to the window, seating himself on the cushioned ottoman and resting an elbow on the sill. The moon was still high above him illuminating the world below in a pale and silvery light and he felt very small in a huge universe at that moment.

Was that what happened when something so intense ended abruptly?

Did the world feel different?

"I've got to get more sleep..." A hint to himself that he overlooked and instead he leaned back and rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes. He spent a short time trying to find something inside that would make him feel less empty but there wasn't anything there.

Eventually, he had no other option but to drag his weary body back to bed and when sleep took him he gave a sigh of relief as his consciousness slipped away and his worries dissipated into the night. They would be there to greet him in the morning, of course, the way the sun would greet the earth as it rose, and the emptiness would return to plague him once again.

When he woke the first thing he noticed was that he was incredibly hungry, hungry enough that his stomach growled, the second thing he noticed was the shrill call of the telephone on the table out in the hall.

With little grace, Aro near tumbled from his bed and hurried out into the hall, snagging the receiver and almost throwing it to his ear before mumbling a sleepy greeting. His eyes caught sight of the old grandfather clock across from him and he grimaced at the time displayed by elegant hands.

_ 8am _ .

A familiar tone drifted over the line.

"Aro, I'm terribly sorry to have called so early." Carlisle.

"It's fine, but I do hope what you have to say or ask is important."

"Well, I hope you don't feel too much ill will for me, but I was hoping I could arrange an appointment with you today, as your doctor and as a client of yours?"

Ah, yes, his time was in demand at that time of year.

"If you are suggesting an 8:30 appointment I have some less than polite words for you." The threat was softened with what he hoped sounded like a smile even if he wasn't smiling. Not even close.

"Of course not, I just wanted to catch you before I left for my first appointment of the day. Would lunchtime suit you better?"

_ Lunchtime tomorrow, maybe  _ Aro thought bitterly, but he knew it was hunger and sleep deprivation and not a dislike for Carlisle that had him in such a sour mood, not that those issues were the root of his dismal attitude of late but they did factor in somewhat.

"Yes, lunchtime would be fine, Any time after 12 is fine." With them both in agreement of the time Aro hung up the phone without saying goodbye and went and lay face down on his bed for 20 minutes trying to put himself in a better mood for company.

It didn't work.

To say he pulled himself around enough to be seen as even marginally presentable was an understatement but Carlisle was going to have to deal with it. The good doctor was going to have to accept the slightly rumpled appearance of his accountant, the white shirt not fully buttoned, and a loose braid to keep his long hair from his face, while Aro did not look his best, as he did not believe he had a best, at least he was accepting visitors which gave him some hope for his mental state.

Whatever sleep he'd had that night seemed to have settled his mind enough for him to manage breakfast. Even if he did find himself mindlessly wandering to the lakeside to sit on the bench a while with a mug of tea in hand leaving a half-eaten breakfast in the table back at the house, he had managed something at least. 

His eyes swept the surface of the water like they had done so time and time again in previous visits, but he knew he would not find what he was searching for, and he assumed he had accepted such even though he still found himself there more often than he cared to admit.

Even if the love had been onesided, he admitted to himself that he was selfish not giving Garrett a chance to speak on his own feelings, it was still complicated trying to manage his emotions and thoughts and feelings into something bearable. This had been his first introduction to love and sex, it had been far from perfect but it had been something Aro had wanted to cling to so dearly. Closeness and intimacy had never been explored in his family, they'd never really had conversations about love and romance and all the things that it entailed.

Aro was uneducated when it came to the world involving humans.

His world was manners, numbers, filing, stoicism and repressed emotions that you mustn't consider releasing into the world.

If this was the mark of a good man Aro was excelling but it wasn't what he wanted, not now he had experienced the world with a little more colour.

When Carlisle arrived and Aro opened the door looking less than perfect he seemed to give almost what appeared to be a doubletake but said nothing as he stepped inside and followed Aro to his home office.

The time for small talk would come after whatever Carlisle wanted was over and done with, but first Aro had to submit himself for a check-up with his doctor to ensure his ribs were healed and he was feeling well in himself. He had experienced some nausea but he didn't seem to think much of it and didn't wish to bother Carlisle with something as trivial as that.

"Now you've ensured I am not wasting away or on the brink of death, can we get down to real business, the thing you wanted to speak with me about?" Aro groused as he moved around his desk to take a seat, he steadfastly ignored Carlisle's knowing grin and instead opened his ledger to the doctor's name writing down the time of the appointment and the date. "Sit down already."

Doing as he is told, Carlisle takes up the visitors seat and sets his bag on the floor by his feet still smiling, though this time it seemed to hold an edge of pity more than anything else and Aro bristled at the thought of the doctor feeling such a thing for him.

"I am worried for you Aro, you're in this huge house all alone now, you went through something that clearly left you shaken and unhappy- as a friend and as your doctor I wanted to ensure you're health and safety." It was then Aro truly regretted telling him anything about what had happened. "Come now, don't be so sour, someone has to care for you. You certainly won't let any distant relatives know how you're feeling and you've said yourself I am the closest thing to a friend you have, and even then you keep me at arm’s length."

There was a moment of silence before Aro relented and his shoulders dropped in resignation.

He had called Carlisle in some drunken hysterical state, not hours after Garrett had left and he would regret that until the end of time. Even though the doctor had been so good about it and had come over to check on him.

"I'm fine, Carlisle. I might have sounded a wreck the last time we spoke but I'd rather you forget you ever saw that or heard that part of me. I think I am completely over it all." It was a barefaced lie but at least he could say it without his voice cracking, he could utter the lies without his eyes shining and that was certainly something.

That was progress, wasn't it?

"Well, I don't mean to ruin your perfect facade but that display of emotion was likely the healthiest you've ever been and in knowing that it does make me hesitant to tell you this." Whatever it was had the doctor wringing his hands together and Aro found himself surprised to see the man look so nervous. 

“You see...” 


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garrett finds himself beached again, only this time his rescuer is not the one he really wants to see. Oh, and something about him has changed quite spectacularly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got a few chapters already written out so I will try and post them regularly and refrain from posting them all in one go ahah

###  Chapter Thirteen

“Oh my Gods, is that a man washed up on the beach?” The voice was what alerted him to the fact he was not in fact in the sea but laid out in the sand under a sweltering sun with a mouth as dry as paper. 

Blinking slowly Garrett groaned and rolled over awkwardly on to his back. 

“Oh Christ, naked as the day you were born, sir, are you ok?” 

Garrett blinked open his eyes and grimaced as the sun blinded him before a man came into view blocking the furious orb from his sight, never had he been so thankful.

But something felt odd, his body didn't feel as heavy as it usually did, not as heavy as the last time he had been washed ashore, he wriggled his toes but they felt fine- OH TOES! He- he had legs?!

Trying not to outwardly panic he took a few quick breaths to ease the pounding of his heart in his chest and instead turned his attention back to the man standing over him with an expression of great concern etched into his features. He had to say something, he had to... was this the same beach he had washed up on before?

Was Aro nearby?!

The ache in his chest hadn't a dulled a day since he fled the lake on the Volturi land. Everything about that day had been near perfect and then out of nowhere he was cast out and the familiarity of such an act left unhealed emotional wounds deeper than they had ever been before. What had he done to make Aro change his mind with such swift ease?

Realising he had, so far, said not a single word, Garrett blinked slowly and pointed to his legs.

"I do not think I can walk." This prompted the man beside him into action, he removed his long coat and draped it over Garrett's shoulders. The blazing sun and such a thick winter coat seemed odd but Garrett didn't care to question it, he was more concerned that he was now what appeared to be fully human and naked. 

Before he can utter a single word of thanks he is lifted from the sand with ease and Garrett lets out an irritated grunt realising he is vastly lighter in his current state.

"I have a car, let me take you somewhere out of the sun. You look like you might need medical attention and, uh, some clothes." The part of the sentence was spoken quietly but with a hint of a smile that Garrett absolutely did not appreciate but there was nothing he could say to defend himself and the stranger was being kind enough to help him out.

The one thing on his mind however was, did this man know Aro and would he take him to him?

"I don't think I've seen you in town before, you're not from here are you?" Garrett was now laid in the back of the most hideous sounding contraption he had ever encountered, the noise alone set him on edge and he had to withhold from covering his ears with his hands to drown out the sound, then there was the motion!

Gods below, the entire experience felt like torture and yet the man sat in a seat in at the helm seemed perfectly at ease as he waited for an answer. He had to say something, anything to gain some sort bearing of what the hell as happening to him.

"No, I do not live here. I don't know how I got here."

"Oh, that's... did you get tossed overboard on a ship or something?"

That was the perfect explanation and his aching head had no part in coming up with such an idea, even better!

"Yes, I think the waves were rough and all I can recall is waking up on the beach where you found me. I don't know what happened to the rest of the crew." The stranger remained silent for some time as though mulling over the details but in the end, he just shrugged and continued steering at the helm of the contraption that rumbled like some great beast and Garrett continued to silently resent it and everything it stood for.

"Well, Bells won't be back from school, I can take you to my place and find you something to wear and then I'll call Carlisle." These words seemed more thoughts spoken aloud but Garrett recognised the name and he felt ice flood his veins and pool in the pit of his stomach.

That damned doctor was everywhere!

“But I saw his car outside the Volturi mansion earlier, he might not be available.” Upon hearing this Garrett felt jealousy flare up again the way it had numerous times before at the mention of that detestable man and he tried to bite back a growl that curled up from his throat. 

“You ok back there?” The stranger glanced back as the contraption slowed, and Garrett feigned a headache before nodding slowly as he massaged his temples hoping he gave a realistic enough performance that those concerned brown eyes would stop investigating. 

He was a curious man, that much he knew for sure. He wanted to know too much and it left Garrett feeling vulnerable. 

There was no time to consider much else as the accursed noise stopped and the blessed silence fell over them even though his ears were ringing. He glanced out of the window and his eyes were met with a modest house, it was nothing as grand as the Volturi mansion but Garrett had always assumed Aro was far more dramatic than the average human. 

Again, he was lifted from his seat without warning and carried into the house where he was set on something extremely comfortable. 

The stranger had vanished without much of an explanation but he did return with clothing which he handed to Garrett who just looked at them set neatly on his lap. 

How did he put these on?

Seeing the internal struggle playing out quite plainly on his face the stranger sighed and got down on his knees in front of Garrett and helped him dress. 

“You know, if I am able to help you to the best of my ability I am going to have to know the truth about you,” He smiled when Garrett nodded, “So, let’s start small. What’s your name, where are you from?” 

There was no hiding that he was acting the proverbial and literal fish out of water. 

If Aro had been so accepting perhaps others would be too. The very thought of Aro left him reeling for a moment- it still hadn’t truly sunk in that he had told him he loved him and yet in the same breath told him to leave. 

_ Why, Aro? _

“Hey, I really need some cooperation here.” The tone was soft but insistent and Garrett snapped his attention back to the stranger and offered an apologetic smile. 

“Sorry, my name is Garrett and I am from the sea.” The stunned silence that proceeded that statement last for some time but it seemed the stranger had, perhaps, heard odder things from others. 

“Well, Garrett from the sea, I am Charlie Swan and I am from here. Nice to meet you.” 

With introductions out of the way, Charlie seemed to relax and his soft interrogative demeanour mellowed exponentially. He sat back on the floor and looked up at a now dressed Garrett and sighed again shaking his head.

“So, you can’t walk. Do you need a wheelchair?” 

Thankfully Garrett easily recalled the wheelchair he had seen at the Volturi mansion and he brightened almost immediately nodding his head. Charlie looked genuinely relieved to find that he had finally stumbled upon some answers, and Garrett didn't have the heart to tell him he probably had the wrong idea.

The peacekeeper mumbled something and wandered off again leaving Garrett, essentially, stranded where he sat, though he wouldn't complain it was incredibly comfortable and the way his eyelids grew heavy was a sure-fire sign he was happy to fall asleep right there and then.

When he opened his eyes again his gaze was met by the ceiling above him and something soft and heavy was covering him. Turning his head he saw a girl sat on one of the armchairs across from him watching a glowing box that seemed to have people inside it and she didn't seem to care that he was laying there. He wondered if this was the 'Bells' that Charlie had mentioned earlier, his daughter?

Bells glanced over and their eyes met and she sprang from her seat and jogged out of the room calling for her dad, she returned seconds later and flopped down on the ground and watched him for a second before smiling.

"Dad said you were washed up from a... shipwreck?" While she seemed to speak awkwardly, as though language seemed new to her, she had kind eyes and the curiosity alight in them reminded him painfully of Aro. "Are you a sailor?" She was shooed off when Charlie appeared at the door but Garrett saw she didn't go far and hovered for a moment at the end of the sofa before returning to watching the glowing box.

"Glad to see you awake, I hope you're feeling better- sorry I left you like that, I had to go talk to a friend about a spare wheelchair they might have." The chair itself looked almost identical to the one he'd been in before and Garrett held back from asking where he got it from. "Just say the word and I'll help you into it. But, uh, it's getting late so I doubt you need to move right now. I was going to make dinner if you're hungry?"

This man was kind and in a way, Garrett knew he was deceiving him. While he had told the truth about being from the sea, he could tell Charlie had only humoured him in his response.

It was late when Charlie's daughter, who was actually called Bella, appeared at his bedside again, he could see her perfectly in the dark and she looked just as curious as she had earlier in the night. Wish a finger pressed to her lips she signalled for him to remain silent as she moved about the room and lit some candles leaving them bathed in a soft orange glow rather than the glaring yellow of the bulb above them.

"You didn't answer my question earlier, but I have another one. If you can't walk why were you on a ship?" Her dark eyes reflected the candlelight leaving them a golden orange as she gazed over at him from her seat on the floor. She was a sweet thing Garrett decided and her curiosity matched his.

"Well, I wasn't actually a sailor and I wasn't on a ship." Garrett pushed himself up into a sitting position realising that he was able to bend his legs and with wides eyes, he crossed his legs only smiling triumphantly when he made himself comfortable. "I told your father I was from the sea if he took that to mean I was a sailor that is on his head." Garrett teased lightly and when he looked back over to the girl she was beaming as though she'd been gifted the secret of life.

"Aha- are you a merman or something?" The scoff she offered in her words was almost immediately stifled when Garrett gave a serious nod in response. "Merpeople aren't real, ahaha!" Her laugh burst out without the care she had taken when first entering the room and she slapped her hands over her mouth to silence herself.

"Of course not, I'm sure you have a reputable source to confirm that too?" Even then as the words left his mouth he could hear them in Aro's voice more than his own, and he felt his soul curl at the edges as he physically folded himself raising his knees to his chest and holding onto them tightly. It felt like a natural position to be in and it felt good to hold himself together in such a way even if having legs still felt so horribly odd.

"I'm sorry, did I hurt your feelings?"

"No, it wasn't you."

"Oh." She didn't understand and that was fine, she didn't need to. She was a child why did she need to know about heartbreak? "Are you really a merman?"

"I was, I don't know what I am now." Whatever identity he had clung so hard to was now seemingly irrelevant. He had no tail and probably couldn't breathe underwater. Whatever had happened to him before he was washed up on the beach had changed him so deeply it felt irreversible.

If it was would it be worth looking for Aro again?

"I think you're just a man now. Do you feel sad about it?"

"Yes and no. It's complicated but... shouldn't you be asleep, how old are you?" It was way past her bedtime he knew that much, and she seemed younger than he had originally assumed, not quite a teenager maybe?

"I'm 11 nearly 12," Bella said this almost proudly, she was a baby really but voicing that would do him no good. He didn't want to hurt her pride when she clearly assumed she was very mature.

“Yeah, go to bed, I don’t want to be the reason your dad scolds you later.” This seemed to sink in well enough and Bella go to her feet and extinguished the candles before bidding him goodnight and vanishing through the door to his right. 

It was embarrassing how much better he felt telling the truth about himself to a child. This was not her burden to bear, and it wasn’t Charlie’s either. 

If could just bring himself to mention Aro he was sure all of this would be over in no time. 

_ He didn’t want you, Garrett. He confessed his love to you and then sent you away. What makes you think he would take you back now you have legs? _

Ah, there it was. 

The doubt he had been waiting for formed into the words he had tried to avoid for weeks. 


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That damn Carlisle shows up again! Garrett has a rather big request for both Charlie and the doctor, and while they want to help neither are really qualified.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A halloween post. Spooky.

###  Chapter Fourteen 

“So you want… to learn to walk?” Charlie seemed sceptical and he shoved his hands into his jeans pockets and turned away for a moment. Indecision ruled him and Garrett watched him as he considered what had been suggested. 

When he turned back to Garrett it was clear he had made up his mind but still had questions he wanted answering. 

Whatever it was he was to ask, Garrett would ensure to be as truthful as possible. 

"Bella has been none stop chattering about merpeople since she got up this morning, does this have anything to do with you saying you're from the sea?"

_ What an excitable girl,  _ Garrett thought fondly. He smiled up at Charlie clearly giving away that he was, in fact, the perpetrator.

"Okay, but you haven't explained who you are or where you're from properly and I really should be suspicious but something tells me... that you really are telling the truth." Had this man heard many wild stories in his life through his job of keeping the peace? It seemed likely but perhaps it would work in his favour because Charlie seemed to be a good man and hadn't so far written off anything he had said even if he didn't fully believe him.

"I have already told you, my name is Garrett and I am from the sea, there is not much more I can tell you because there is nothing else." Garrett offered a shrug but was decent enough to stifle his laugh when Charlie swore under his breath. "Aro had no issue accepting a thing, but he saw me when I had a tail-" He cut himself off, eyes now wide at how suddenly he had given himself away like that.

Running a hand through his hair he tried to soothe the frantic beating of his own heart as his cheeks flushed red with embarrassment.  _ What had just happened _ ?!

"You know Aro, as in Aro Volturi?" Charlie was standing closer to where he sat now, only he was deep in thought and no longer looking down at Garrett but out of his window across to another house on the street. "Wait right here, I will be back as soon as possible. I have to talk to someone." Charlie pointed at Garrett almost absent-mindedly before leaving the room.

“I didn’t even… and he’s gone.  _ Fine. _ ” 

When Garrett heard the front door shut he sighed and leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes.

There was the sound of smaller, lighter footsteps moments later as Bella entered the room and when he opened his eyes she was offering a sheepish and apologetic smile.

"I'm not angry with you, Bella. Don't worry."

They had become friends, which seemed odd but Bella had given him no choice while he stayed there. Mostly she asked him about his life as a merman and Garrett fabricated a lot of his life to make it sound more magical than it really was. 

He wasn't sure how long he had been in that house but he had been made to feel welcome by both of them. And he had somehow become an unofficial babysitter, but to be honest, he could see Bella prefered his company over whoever was taking care of her previously. Not that she needed much supervision, she usually sat on the sofa and did her homework with him, though, for the majority of the time he learned more than she did from it.

They spent afternoons learning the words for things and Garrett honestly felt truly grateful for the girl's kindness and he hoped no one would take advantage of her sweet nature in the future. Even the boy Edward she spoke so dreamily of.

"I didn't think he would believe me..." Her voice was quiet, almost timid as she spoke.

"It's fine. I really am not mad. A lot of people in the world wouldn't believe me and I thought your father was one of them. I was wrong and I'm glad for it." There wasn’t much more he could say to her other than it was fine, she should believe him or she wouldn’t. 

He watched as Bella stepped further into the room and sat in one of the armchairs across from him. Something was on her mind he could tell that much, and so with a sigh, he gestured for her to speak.

"How do you know Aro?" Oh, that. How much of that conversation had she heard? All of it?

"I- used to live with him." It technically wasn't a lie.

"But dad said Aro lives on his own- and you said you were from the sea." Nothing in her tone was accusatory, that childlike curiosity inside her had to manifest into something somehow.

Talking about Aro was really not one of the things Garrett thought appropriate to explain to an 11-year-old but lying to her wasn't the right thing to do. He could certainly omit events and whatnot and she'd still understand him but it was painful.  _ He _ didn't want to talk about Aro because after what happened he knew he should have been angry but all he felt was a longing he had never really experienced before until he met him.

His time back in the ocean had been a blur. Whatever his life had been in those few weeks was nothing short of a mystery to him. Had he hunted or slept? Had he found his kind and sought comfort from them?

While he was shunned by his own family and those that would dwell in the darker depths of the sea, he had always found the coral merfolk amiable and he wondered if maybe he had gone to them with his woes? It didn't seem likely, not if he had been washed up on the same beach as the last time. It would be unfeasible as the corals were so far away in far sunnier climes.

There was no way he could tell or recall.

Regret bloomed within him when he realised he hadn't really told Aro how he felt and there had been many times the opportunity had presented itself only for him to bottle out. He was ashamed of his feelings always wondering if he was allowed to love another being that no one had loved him before.

"I have been washed up on the beach before. Aro took care of me. He was kind and I was an angry and violent monster, at first. Have you ever been scared or hurt and you’ve gotten angry when someone tried to help?" This seemed to strike a chord in Bella and she nodded to show she understood but as she opened her mouth to ask another question Charlie returned home looking energised and near vibrating with excitement. 

"You- you uh are really a merman... or were..." Was all he could stutter out. A familiar face appeared behind Charlie and Garrett sneered at the doctor who paid no attention to the obvious displeasure of him being there. "He said he knows you said he met you when you stayed with Aro.”

“Hm, I do recognise that scowl though you don’t seem as sharp as the last time. In regards to Aro, he is not at his best.” Carlisle explained, again ignoring when Garrett snarled at him as though talking to an animal.

The anger fell away almost instantly upon hearing that there was something wrong with Aro.

"Is he ok?"

When no one answered him he bared his teeth in warning but neither man seemed to notice and Garrett wondered if his blunted and more human teeth came across as less dangerous?

Regardless of this he could not stop the innate need to stand, something he could definitely say he had not experienced until then. Pushing himself to the edge of the sofa with as much effort as he could muster he forced himself shakily to his feet. 

The ground seemed so very far away as he stood tall on his feet for the first time. He towered over Bella and now stood eye to eye with Charlie and Carlisle. 

Both men lurch forward to steady Garrett but they don't seat him again and he was thankful for that. When they were happy that Garrett would not fall they moved away and he was able to take in his surroundings with his new height. 

The wonder of seeing the world in a new way lost it’s novelty rather rapidly as his ming latched onto Aro and the state of his health and looking back to Carlisle he spoke again. 

"Is he ok?" Garrett repeated, his tone firm this time and in such demanded a response.

"Aro is fine, he is experiencing his first heartbreak, nothing you need to be so alarmed about." Carlisle offered softly, he seemed genuine in his explanation and Garrett regretted his attitude against him... somewhat. He was a doctor, Aro had said, he was there to heal people and Aro had needed his help- it didn't make Garrett feel any less jealous but he at least understood better now. "I wonder if the reason you look like Hell is that you're suffering the same thing?"

To be so bluntly revealed like that caught Garrett off guard and, Gods, he laughed because he didn't know what else to do or say.

Of course, he was hurting but Carlisle didn't have to just come out and  _ say _ it.

"Hey, why don't you go over and keep Edward company while he does his homework, Bells?" Charlie turned to Bella who had quite obviously been trying to remain quiet enough that she wouldn't be noticed. She sighed at having been discovered but Garrett saw the smile that grew on her face as she nodded and left the house to go see this Edward kid.

"Look, I'm not great with romance and stuff, as you can see I don't have a partner," Charlie began awkwardly but it was clear he didn't want to have this conversation even if it was helping Garrett. Even so he and Carlisle settled into the armchairs before gesturing for Garrett to also take a seat. "Like I was saying, I'm not great with all that romance stuff but we thought maybe you would be happier if we took you to see Aro?" By the end of his sentence, what had been awkward had become something softer even if he did still look extremely uneasy speaking on the subject.

"Is that really a good idea? He told me there was no place for me in his life." It was difficult to get the words out but as he spoke them it felt like releasing some of the pain.

"Garrett, you were a little more difficult to house in your original state and Aro did not make the decision lightly to let you go. In his mind, you were trapped there and forced into a small space and he could not allow you to continue living that way just because he loved you." Carlisle said in a matter-of-fact tone as he sat back in his seat, his hands rested gently on the armrests of his seat across from Garrett. "I know you don't like me Garrett, and I am not entirely trusting of you after what you did to Aro but it is not pleasant to see him the way he is. I want to help him more than I want to help you and reuniting you both seems to be the best way to end his melancholy."

He tried not to narrow his eyes at Carlisle as he spoke to him about trust, there was not a single thing that the doctor could do that would make him trust him. Everything about Carlisle rubbed Garrett the wrong way but for Aro, he would hold his tongue and try and be as civil as possible.

"I want to be able to walk first." Upon hearing this Carlisle raised his brows in surprise and he exchanged a look with Charlie who nodded slowly but said nothing to dissuade Garrett or explain further to Carlisle. "I don't want to use a wheelchair, not when it could go to someone who really needs it. I've just never used legs before, I know I can walk... I want to try." It felt wrong to use a wheelchair when he knew he didn't need one. His legs seemed to be strong and he was capable of moving them; it was just likely a balance issue that he would have to get used to.

The very idea that he could see Aro again and soon could have left him in a solely euphoric state for days, yet he refrained from letting the excitement get to him. There was work to be done, there would be time for the joy to diffuse into every cell of his body later. The second he felt Aro against him again would be the closest thing to peace he would likely ever experience and he wanted that so badly that he physically ached.

"We can help you learn to walk, Garrett, but please understand that it may take some time for you to truly excel at it," Carlisle warned though Garrett didn't take much notice of the warning as he imagined standing before Aro for the very first time. "Are you even listening to me?"

"I don't think he is, uh, I don't blame him though. Look at him, his mind is on the prize before he even started the race."

It was true.

There was a small part of him that was terrified Aro didn't want to see him again, and while he tried not to dwell on that he couldn't help but imagine his face falling when Garrett showed up on his doorstep. Hadn't he thought of this scenario several times already when the sun had gone down and he lay on Charlie's sofa trying to sleep?

The dreams too.

Waking up from a dream that felt so real, sweating trying to catch his breath and understand where the Hell he was because he was so disoriented. Everything would feel so real in those moments as he dreamt, sometimes he would surface from the water and find himself in the lake on Volturi land and there Aro would be seen sitting on the bench with someone else, his love directed at them instead of Garrett. Other times it would be happier and a lot flirtier. No matter how the dream began or ended he would always wake feeling empty and lost as though each morning he was washed up on the beach again.

“When can we start?” Back to the present now, Garrett was eager to put their plan in motion. 

“As soon as you like.” 


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carlisle dances around what he wants to tell Aro until he doesn't and Aro is less than impressed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was not going to post anything until after NaNoWriMo but I am so ahead of schedule with the story I am writing for it that I am taking a break and wrote this in one night yesterday ahah.

###  Chapter Fifteen

“You see…” Carlisle seemed to stall now and Aro crossed his arms over his chest feeling rather unimpressed with the doctor’s behaviour. 

Whatever the doctor had on his mind to tell him must have been something awful or embarrassing as he’d never seen Carlisle so hesitant before. 

Silence proceeded and Aro sat merely watching the doctor work through whatever it was he had come to tell him. For the most part, the doctor had always been easygoing and professional, but lately, it had seemed he was on edge and unwilling to drop by and see Aro when he was requested. Another doctor would be sent and Aro was finding himself increasingly frustrated with the man he had once assumed was his friend, even in the loosest sense of the word.

"If you are hoping to save my feelings from something, I can assure you, there is no need." The words were spoken through gritted teeth and he had to hold back from balling his hands into fists. While he had never been quick to anger before something inside him had changed, as though meeting Garrett had taken him apart and he was left to put himself back together after he had shunned the merman from his life. The only problem was... Aro didn't know himself well enough to fit the pieces back into the right spaces.

He had to make himself a new man, start again and build himself up from scratch.

It was a daunting task and left him with little patience for others.

"Please do not take offence to this, Aro. I mean this in the best way possible but... since Garrett left you have retreated inside yourself more so than you ever have done before. You rarely see clients and I thought the best way to combat this was to maybe try and set you up with someone else." When the words left Carlisle's mouth he watched as the doctor winced assuming Aro would react in the worst way possible.

Of course, he refused to give Carlisle the satisfaction of being right and he merely nodded. In truth, his heart couldn't take it yet, meeting a new person and wondering if he would ever feel the intense heat under his skin from their touch like he did with Garrett or the tenderness that would wash over him in gentle ripples through his soul as he listened to them talk... It was too much too fast but if he didn't try would he be a lost cause left to rot in the mansion on his own?

Abandonment hadn't ever been something he feared as he had been victim to it enough times to know that it was the norm for him. But love, real harsh and unrelenting love that battered at the walls of his heart like waves in a wicked storm battering the wave breakers on the beach, that was something entirely different and even if it had been by his choice losing a love like Garrett wrecked him.

A shipwreck on the open ocean, an empty shell with tattered sails half sunk and already deserted by the crew. Creaking wood as the waves rocked it to and fro waiting for the oncoming storm to smash it to pieces on sharp rocks hidden by the dark water.

A shipwreck of his own making. He had been the one to run himself aground only dislodging himself from the pain when he repressed it but he hadn't managed that for long because now he was thinking of everything that could have been all because Carlisle thought it was a good idea for him to move on!

Maybe it was time, there wasn't going to be a point in time where he might see Garrett again, he had been lucky, or even unlucky, to have come across him in the first place on the beach. If he hadn't left the house that morning none of the events would have come to pass that lead up to this excruciating moment of sheer mortification. His doctor trying to set him up with some stranger that probably assumed they could charm the pants off him.

Was he going to threaten him to within an inch of his life just so Aro could feel that thrill again?

Gods, there really was something wrong with him, wasn't there?

"Who is this hapless soul you've decided needs to be eviscerated by my awful personality?"

"Oh come now, you're lovely once you get past the prickly facade. I've seen how soft you can be even with something that nearly killed you," A sharp glare shot the doctor's way saw the man wince and internally Aro enjoyed the little victory of having Carlisle squirm the way he did try to tread lightly around him. "And in any case, I think you'd rather like him. He's tall, kind, some think he is handsome and he might even pretend to kill you if you're still into that sort of thing." The joke at the end did relieve some of the tension between them and Aro gave a smile that he couldn't fight back any longer. At the end of it all, he still had someone that cared for him even if it was technically part of Carlisle's job description to do so.

Though, at the moment he seemed to be mixing business and personal matters together for Aro's sake.

"Don't go around telling people I'm nice," Aro began but he knew people already considered him a kind man even if it was the minimum amount of kindness. While he never showed up to any sort of charity drive he did always donate if someone came to his door asking for something specific and even offered expensive items for auction from time to time. All in all, he had the reputation of an eccentric recluse but a well-liked one to a certain degree.

He tucked an errant strand of black hair behind his ear as he waited on Carlisle to tell him more. He had tried to make himself look put together but he hadn't tried that hard. The rude awakening left him tired still.

It didn't matter if had no other details but it would be odd, Carlisle was meticulous in his job, why wouldn't he be the same in his personal life?

Surely the doctor had vetted the man he had decided to throw to the lion for a torturous death at the claws and jaws of his acquaintance. Though Aro considered it wouldn't hurt to give him a chance it wasn't like he was going to actively go out and find someone himself and even if he wasn't interested in having a new relationship it was worth the distraction for a little while.

"When do I meet this poor soul?"

"Will you please stop assigning yourself the personality of a monster, Aro?" Carlisle began, he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. It was then Aro noticed how tired he looked, the dark circles and the pallor of his skin, something was keeping him up at night. It made sense now why he was getting assigned to different doctors if Carlisle was dealing with something either important or dangerous. Either way, it was taking its toll on him and Aro was slightly concerned.

"I guarantee you will like this man, I swear to you that if you meet him you won't want to let him go." It was a bold claim to make, far too bold and, honestly, Aro wasn't sure he liked the statement one bit. He wasn't about to be coerced into accepting a relationship based on one man's confidence but he wasn't going to dismiss the idea of moving on from Garrett.

If such a thing were possible.

"I will bring him tomorrow if he can wait that long. He's eager, so very eager." It sounded like he was describing a puppy more than a man but someone who experienced life with as much joy as possible couldn't be bad to be around. Perhaps the lust for life would rub off on him and Aro would find a decent reason to smile in the morning as he woke with the sun.

It would make a difference to his usual routine of waking with the dull ache of loss pulsing in his chest as he tried to drown out the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. Living by the ocean had always had a calming effect on him growing up and he'd spend hours of his day watching the tide go out and come in again and if the weather was fine for it he'd search the detritus on the beach for potential treasures washed up on to the sand.

His favourite was sea glass, nothing so very precious but he liked the way it felt in his hands and how it looked as he held it up to the sun and watched the green gleaming inside like a gem caught in frost. He still had a jar of sea glass he'd collected as a child, and while he grew up and tossed his childhood toys away he could not bring himself to let go of the sea glass.

His mother, in her more lucid moments, would often tell him it was a gift from the ocean, she told him that generally, sea glass was worthless but worth was not always based on price or rarity. If you loved something then the personal worth of it was all that mattered. So he kept the jar right up until adulthood and would continue to do so for himself and for his mother.

The happy memory that had surfaced was a surprise to him but a welcome one all the same.

How long had it been since his own thoughts offered him an ounce of joy?

"So tomorrow I will need to be presentable?" Aro asked quietly, he was still lost in the feeling of his memory and the warmth it provided to his fractured soul. He missed his mother and so dearly wished to have been able to talk to her one last time before she vanished for good.

"You look wonderful every time I see you, Aro. This dishevelled look suits you. There is nothing wrong with living your life with your hair out of place and your shirt untucked. It gives you a more human air, makes you approachable. There's good that will come of that."

Aro pursed his lips for a moment unconvinced by what Carlisle had said even if it was a compliment. He would ensure he looked his best tomorrow if there is a chance he might make a connection with the stranger he wanted to, at least, prove to himself he was capable of taking care of himself again. Even if it was just for his benefit and not for his... 'date'.

“I do not need to be approachable,” Aro argued, after all, he had gotten by just fine with people avoiding him to a degree, even with the odd moment of kindness he offered he was still not exactly a pillar of the community. 

“Tomorrow you do, so brush up on those conversation skills of yours because your date is eager to see you.” With that Carlisle rose to his feet with the intention of leaving, he only paused when Aro also got up and blocked his exit. 

“Are you not giving me a name, at least?”

The doctor seemed to think for a moment before he smiled almost deviously and shook his head. 

“No, I don’t think I will. I will leave him to give you all the details. You’ll need something to talk about if you’re still so insistent you’re a terrible person who couldn’t possibly be good company to be around.” There was nothing left for Aro to do but step down and allow Carlisle to leave, he wasn’t going to stand there any argue as to why he was awful. 

He had some pride. 

_ I suppose I will just have to see what tomorrow brings me... _


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aro has much on his mind when he agrees to meet this stranger Carlisle has sought out for him. 
> 
> A trip to the beach clears his mind but only for a moment and he is plagued with indecision on what he wants and who he wishes to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took a super long break from writing, mainly because I had no choice.   
> So please enjoy the latest instalment and I am sorry it is extremely late.

###  Chapter Sixteen

The more Aro thought of this ‘secret matchmaking’ scheme of Carlisle’s the more he came to distrust it.

The good doctor would never stitch him up, but while his heart was in the right place he was often capable of dropping the ball and not quite understanding a situation as well as he let on.

Not being the paragon of social interaction, Aro was at a loss on who on Earth Carlisle had found that would suit him well enough that they would consider seeing him again. No names came to mind, and none likely would no matter how much thought he put into it.

He had to face facts, he was antisocial and there was nothing he could say to prove anyone incorrect in that assumption.

Not that it mattered all that much to him but he didn't do all too well with surprises and meeting someone he didn't know was definitely classed as a surprise.

Anxiety ridden now, Aro paced the floor of his study several times before realising there was nothing to be done about it and he had to accept that Carlisle was just trying to do something nice for him. Malicious behaviour was not in the doctor's nature and so Aro had to trust him. He always did, it was just taking more strength than normal for him to get past it that was all.

The majority of his day was spent getting the place in order, he steadfastly ignored the pool room shutting and locking the door trying to avoid the feelings that stirred as he caught a glimpse of the unmoving water. He caught himself before he stepped inside with the faint hope of seeing the dark shadow resting at the bottom of the water, there was no need to do that to himself. There was nothing in there he knew that. 

The parlour was dusted and swept, it was the only place he would be happy to receive guests in, especially those he did not know well but it did occur to him that the whole place needed to be redecorated. 

Everything in the place was old and had belonged to his parents or grandparents. It was an aged place, a memory of the past unchanged after nearly 60 years, more a museum piece than a home.

If things went well with this stranger it could be the boost of energy he needed to change things, after all, hadn't he wallowed enough?

Garrett was never coming back; that was a certainty but his presence had changed Aro and forced him to realise he lived a lonely existence in the house he was born and raised in. Things could not go on the way they had been for so long because he was so close to breaking point now that even he could see the cracks in his ideology.

What did he want from his life?

That was a heavy question for so early in the afternoon but Aro wanted to ponder it for a moment while he did housework and avoided thinking of a certain merman that always seemed to linger just at the edge of his mind. Garrett would never truly leave him but he wasn't so sure that was a good thing.

When he could stand the sight of his own home no more, Aro threw open his front door and hurried down to the beach, he needed the cold sea air and crashing waves to soothe whatever troubles he had that plagued him. He might have still been alone on the beach but he did not feel lonely as he traversed across the shingle beach the small pebbles under his boots sinking into the sand below. The ship wreckage was cleared away now and only the large mast lay half-rotted from the bottom up and bleached by the sun and smooth to the touch.

There were names carved into it, youths had claimed the mast as theirs. Aro took a seat on what seemed like the sturdiest part and let his hands trace over the names carved deep into the wood. The moment meant nothing to him but it being away from the darkness of his home left him feeling calmer than he had in days. The emotional exhaustion that had plagued him was swept away with the light sea breeze and he took a deep breath and closed his eyes only exhaling when his chest became too tight.

It was a release of everything that had controlled his thoughts through winter and spring, he was going to live through summer a better man, or at least, he hoped he would.

There was nothing wrong with new beginnings, they were just hard to get started when he had been shaken down to his very bones and exposed in a way he had never been before.

But he understood now that life was what you made it, and as cliche as it was it very much made sense.

He could mourn and mope, let his sadness become him or he could throw off the last vestiges of his pain and renew himself, bloom as flowers did under the sun. There was no use being bitter, Garrett had shown him that in his own way. Having the merman in his life so briefly had changed him but it had changed him for the better.

Allowing himself to love, no matter how soon the moment passed, had opened doors he could no longer shut. The world had come knocking at his door and for the first time in his life, he considered that perhaps all his daydreaming as a child had finally paid off. 

Seeing a merman for the first time had not exactly blown his mind, even after the riot of emotions that had first swept through him after their first exchange, he still did not find it out of the realm of possibility for such creatures to exist. 

Were there more fantastical creatures out there? 

Wouldn’t it now be the right time to leave all he knew behind and go in search of them? Become a collector of knowledge rather than allowing his loneliness to collect all parts of him in the gloom of his ancestral home? 

_ You’re getting ahead of yourself, Aro. Meet this stranger first and if you truly find that you cannot offer any part of yourself to them then go.  _ The clarity of his own thoughts was startling and he rolled his eyes berating himself for having fallen into such a cliche trap. 

“I am just like everybody else, I think.” He muttered to himself as he turned his attention to the sea. Of course, now he understood why he’d come down to the beach and why his eyes were trained on the smallest hint of something breaking the surface. 

But he knew, he knew Garrett wouldn’t be stupid enough to show his face in broad daylight where anyone could see him. This was not a fairytale or even one of those ridiculous erotica romance novels stocked on the highest shelves of the bookshop. Real-life did not grant ordinary people the chance to see their greatest love return in some grand gesture. 

Which partly Aro was relieved about, he couldn’t stand it if Garrett returned to him and made a huge fuss in front of a lot of people. The very thought caused the flush of embarrassment to flare over his skin and he hid his face behind his hands for a moment to compose himself. 

“How awful.” 

If put on the spot, if asked what he would want from Garrett’s return, he would surely become speechless. Firstly, to reveal something of himself like that to someone sounded like torture, and secondly, he hadn’t gifted himself the time to allow such thoughts to collect in his mind. 

A shrieking child dragged him violently out of his thoughts and his head whipped around to where the sound had come from. A small boy was chasing the waves laughing as he ran toward the sea stopping short of actually touching the water, his parents stood watching, one of them clutching his little shoes in their hands. Heartwarming stuff, probably. 

There was work to do back at home and it would be enough to occupy him until late into the evening because as much as he liked to try and portray confidence, he was genuinely afraid and very much nervous of the fast-approaching meeting.

The remainder of his evening was spent working, phone calls that eventually tapered off but his head was now filled with numbers which was a comfort and also, perhaps, a crutch. He would much rather bury himself in work than let another single original thought germinate into something that could root itself deep inside him allowing the pricking thorns of awful memories to embed themselves into his very being again.

Working until the hour was late was the only option he had. It would work in his favour at some point but he knew he’d have to go to bed eventually. The morning would come and Carlisle’s pick for him would arrive and, while he was in no way excited and in no way prepared for such a thing he had to at least look his best. 

Something he hadn’t really put much effort into of late. Though, the general consensus of his acquaintances seemed to think he looked better than he ever had before. 

People were strange. 

For a moment, as he dragged himself up the stairs to bed, he considered writing the whole thing off and cancelling the ‘blind date’. He didn’t like the idea and had expressed this to Carlisle, but he hadn’t been forceful enough. He hadn’t pushed hard enough and outright refused, or perhaps he had and he could not fully recall as the cold grip of anxiety clutched at his insides.

Meeting new people was not an issue. Aro accepted new clients all the time, invited them to his home and poured them tea- but this was entirely different. This was no professional setting and he would have to dress and speak and act in a way that convinced a stranger that he was perfectly acceptable to love. 

Deep down he knew he wasn’t easy to love. That was alright really, he had grown up watching true love dissolve into empty rooms and garbled conversation that resulted in heavy footsteps exiting rooms and long tense silences. 

People were not easy to love. Or at least, it had always seemed that way to him. 

And yet, for one fleeting moment Aro had reached out to something, soft tendrils of adoration and joy, his fingertips had grazed the very edges of it and how the world burst into colour from that one touch. That had been love and he had very nearly been in possession of it. 

How had one chance to experience it changed him? How had the faintest taste on the tip of his tongue, sweet and heady, turned his world on its axis with such ease? 

The very thoughts he had worked hard to avoid had come rushing in with reckless abandon and sleep flitted away to hide in the darkest shadows of his bedroom while the moon, in all her silvery glory, drowned his bed in a celestial light illuminating the emptiness for Aro to witness against his will. 

Dragging the drapes shut would have solved the problem, and yet Aro remained static sat on the edge of his bed, bare feet flat against the cold wood floor while his hands clenched into fists around the bedsheet his grip so tight the fabric was stretched thin to the point of tearing. 

The fear and anger that came as a flurry within buffeted him like a wild winter wind. A cold and uncomfortable thing that tried to rest within him as though a layer of snow across the ground. 

He didn’t want to meet this man, he didn’t want to put himself on display in hopes that something about him was deemed interesting or worthy. Why was he subjecting himself to the game others had played and lost countless times? His experience would be no better than any others that had worn their heart on display like a badge calling out that they were lonely. 

A prize that he would not die alone was not a prize he had ever tried to seek out before and he cursed the merman now that he had changed because of him. His genetic makeup seemingly scrambled and he no longer knew himself with his mind now full of the notion that love would fix whatever it was he hated about himself. 

That was a burden he would not and could not foist upon another. 

But in thinking all of this, lethargy won out and the sharpness of his anger melted away as he lay his head down and closed his eyes. 

Such seesawing emotions would not do. The only way to get through the next day was to get a decent night's sleep and to imagine this was all an elaborate favour for the doctor. Otherwise, he might skip town and never be seen again.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A reunion but it doesn't go as planned.
> 
> There is much to talk about but the words don't come easy or at all until they do and the future is up in the air. 
> 
> Things get heated so maybe not all is lost.

He paced. 

His boots made barely a sound as he crossed the living room back and forth with an energy that jittered through him like the errant sparks from an open circuit. 

Nothing could calm him and he tugged at his shirt, ran a hand through his hair and fussed and fretted about details so minuscule they might not have been details at all. He was too warm, the feeling of hot blood sliding through his veins made him feel unwell and the flush crawling over his skin felt almost scalding.

“Garrett, buddy, I think you need to calm down. You’re acting like this is your wedding day.” Charlie joked, he pats Garrett’s back as he passed by holding a cold beer from the fridge. A rare day off for the peacemaker and he was going to spend it with a good friend who also had children that Bella was friends with. 

“Do you think he would marry me?” Garrett asked the words tumbling from his mouth with reckless abandon, because how would the world look to him knowing that they had agreed to create such a union? 

That was, perhaps, moving too fast. But it felt _nice_. It was something to consider but only if Aro didn’t take one look at him and shut the door in his face.

Even if Carlisle and Charlie had spent a lot of time convincing him Aro would in no way refuse or reject him. He was well within his right to do so but it was highly unlikely that he would. 

“You’re getting ahead of yourself, think about instead what you’d like to say to him when you see him again,” Carlisle suggested gently as he steers Garrett toward the door. 

Awful advice really. Garrett wasn’t famed for having any sort of way with words and his shoulders drooped as he was steered out of the living room and out of the house. 

It was time to leave and it was time to finally reunite with Aro. 

A mix of emotions assaulted him as he slid into the back of Charlie’s car. Revulsion from having to be in the contraption again first of all, but after that passed he had only the uncomfortable throb of anxiety and a flutter of hope that flitted from his chest to his stomach the closer they got to the outskirts of the town. 

Carlisle was speaking softly to him, probably calming words of encouragement but Garrett wasn’t listening as he stared out at the sea running parallel to the road. It seemed so unknown to him now as though he had never once dived under the waves, the person who lived in the depths no longer existed.

Would he miss his life in the sea? 

It didn’t feel like it right then but there was no room in his heart or his mind to contemplate such things. 

Even less so when the Volturi mansion came into view and Charlie slowly snaked the car up the winding driveway until they stopped by the steps. The place loomed over them dark and uninviting but Garrett couldn’t help but feel like he had come home. 

The familiarity of the place was already sinking into his bones and he hadn’t stepped foot on the grounds, without hesitation, Garrett pushed open the car door and the gravel crunched under his boots as he pulled himself up to stand. 

At his full height, the place didn’t seem all that foreboding just sad and somewhat neglected. The paint on the shutters was peeling and the majority of the windows that he could see were layered in a covering of dust and grime and there was no way to see inside. 

“You cannot stand here all day, he is expecting a guest.” Carlisle had gotten out of the car and walked around to stand by his side, and while they had not always been on the best of terms, he did appreciate all the help the doctor had given him. 

“Is it weak to admit I am afraid to see him now?” He couldn’t look at the man stood beside him, he knew which expression he would be wearing and pity was never a welcomed response. 

“It is stronger than you know, my friend. Your apprehension doesn’t come from fear of rejection and I am sure you will understand that when you see him again.” Nothing Carlisle said to him made any sense, from the advice to the motivation but he was trying at least and maybe one day he would understand but likely not for a long time. 

“As I said, he is expecting his guest, try not to keep him waiting. I am sure you two have spent enough time apart as it is.” With a pat on the shoulder, Carlisle sent him on his way and Garrett took the first hesitant step toward the Volturi mansion. 

Before he could even knock on the door or fathom the bell Charlie had started the engine of the car again and pulled away from the house. Even if his reunion with Aro should go awry there was no way for him to get back to Charlie’s home, he was in this all on his own now. 

They either had true faith in him or did not care either way how things might pan out between them. 

Before he could stop himself or overthink the situation, Garrett raised his hand and knocked on the large door loud enough to alert Aro to the fact someone was there, and not moments later he heard the familiar sound of boots on wood.

His heart sped up as he imagined how the man might look and he was scarcely unable to contain the excitement that mobbed his heart. His palms were damp and a flush crawled up his neck as he heard a key turn in the lock before the door was pulled open revealing the one he had been so desperately pining for since he awoken washed up on the beach all those weeks ago. 

The polite smile Aro had greeted him with fell away almost instantly and along with it, the joy Garrett had bouncing around inside him. Something was amiss, had he misunderstood Aro all this time and the love he believed they shared was... nothing? 

Had he come and made a fool of himself?

In a split second, Aro’s polite smile returned and he stepped aside allowing Garret entry.

“Please allow me to apologise, I was stunned for a moment, you look like someone I knew.” Aro’s voice wavered as he spoke but he remained polite as he led Garrett to the parlour and offered him a seat in the bright and airy room. 

A far cry from the other places he had seen on his first visit but by far his my favoured place with the pale blue of the walls and the high ceiling, the windows were clear of dust and grime and Garrett could see the lake on the grounds, still, placid and holding hurtful memories he would prefer to let go of. 

But not yet, he realised as Aro left the room that the man recognised him but not as the merman that he had once housed for the sake of recuperation. While fear clenched around his heart he could not help but feel amused that Aro had assumed Garrett shared a face with a random human in the same city that he resided in.

The poor man was surely confused if not a bit conflicted. 

“I’m sorry, I am aware I should be making conversation but socialising has never been my strong point. After all, I have not introduced myself and I have not asked you your name.” This was a side of Aro that Garrett had not met, a hesitant and inexperienced man that seemed to shrink away from his gaze whenever he tried to catch his eye. 

The fire that heated ire that had simmered under his skin was long gone and all that was left was someone soft but unsure and empty. Was this the product of their parting?

“My name is Aro, it’s nice to meet you. Unfortunately, Carlisle did not tell me a thing about you.” He stopped when Garrett raised a hand in hopes that he would be able to interrupt without seeming to be rude.

This could not go on. This was not his Aro and he wasn’t going to let him be fooled into thinking that he was not his Garrett. 

“Was it really a pair of legs that made you forget me, is that all it took?” There was silence as Aro stood hovering by the door with the intention of bringing refreshments it seemed, he looked unhappy but more because he didn’t know what was happening. “Aro, it hasn’t been that long since you told me to leave, since you told me you loved me but that I could not stay with you.” Surely this was enough to jog his memory- 

Then he saw it, the glimmer of realisation in his eyes, a gleam of unshed tears barely there and the quietest intake of breath almost missed by Garrett. From there everything sort of fell into place as Aro strode across the room with a now unreadable expression on his face. 

The space between them was closed when the smaller man grabbed Garrett by the front of the shirt and pulled him down to his height and greeted him with a searing kiss. How could a kiss feel like he had finally returned home? 

Too soon they were parted again and Garrett tried to chase the warmth that Aro had left against his chest as it dissipated rapidly. There was too much to say, too much he wanted to tell him. No matter how he tried the words would die on his tongue and they both remained standing in silence as the sunlight poured over them from the large windows that overlooked the grounds. 

Eventually, words did come to him but not the ones he wanted. Nothing eloquent or grand, it was nothing that would sweep Aro off his feet or render him speechless. 

“Did you miss me?” He found that he truly wanted to know and it was not because he needed the validation of knowing he was wanted. There was clamouring sort of desperation inside that had to know if Aro had hurt as much as he had? 

Did Aro lose days from his memory? 

While the man might not have been washed ashore physically as Garrett had been, there might have been a moment wherein Aro might have been left exhausted from fighting the waves of his own pain only to be washed up on uncommon ground- they had both never been in love before. 

He was sure Aro had told him that. 

Or was it just a feeling, something they shared because wasn’t your first love wild and intense like theirs had been? 

“You ask that question as if it is an easy one to ask,” Aro began and he gave a noncommittal shrug before gesturing for Garrett to follow him out of the brightly lit parlour and down the hallway drenched in shadow. “I need something stronger than tea if we’re going to examine all that has happened since the last time we saw one another.” How weary he sounded but the way he moved with such confidence now as though the shrinking violet he had been not moments earlier had never existed. 

“I’ve never drunk alcohol before, well, nothing humans have made.” Aro looked over his shoulder at Garrett and offered a smirk before pushing open the door to what appeared to be his study or office. He had no idea and it didn’t matter where they were, he was happy they were together again. 

But something about the reunion felt hollow, as though Aro was drained from just one kiss, his energy spent and now he was living as whatever he had been before Garrett had arrived on his doorstep. 

Lurching forward Garrett catches Aro’s hand and pulls him around to face him searching the man’s face for something he wasn’t sure he could name or explain. When all he received was surprise followed by a soft look of understanding he released Aro’s wrist and allowed him to move away to his desk. 

“You need to give me a moment, Garrett, I truly thought I would never see you again and here you are standing, _standing_ , before me, in fact towering above me. It is a lot to take in, do you understand?” Aro’s hands shook as he lifted a bottle of something from a drawer in his desk and poured himself a large drink which he drank half of before pouring Garrett a drink and handing it to him. 

It smelled odd to him warm… something that he would feel slide down his throat and when he tried it the taste wasn’t all that unpleasant but it certainly wasn’t sweet enough for him and he genuinely wondered how Aro managed to drink so much of it. 

“Shall we head outside, it seems a shame to waste the sun now that it’s here?” The study was too closed in for his liking so when Aro suggested leaving he nodded and followed the man back into the dark hallway. 

If he had to admit something to himself it would be that he hadn’t expected their reunion to be so _flat._ How deeply affected were they that whatever honesty they once had with one another had evaporated without a trace? 

Was the trust gone now? 

That unsteady and crumbling trust that they had used as the foundation for their feelings, had it finally broken down into dust only to be rushed away in a stiff breeze… where was it now and why had Aro changed so much when he remained the same, he had not changed, had he? 

It didn’t feel like he had but who was to tell him other than Aro, who knew him the best but Aro? 

It was easy to ignore his surroundings until the sun blazed down upon him and he gripped his glass as they both stepped out onto a pretty and well-maintained patio. There were a table and chairs set out in the sun and several potted plants housing brilliant blooms Garrett couldn’t name. 

Aro didn’t seem the kind to grow things or get his hands dirty but it seemed unlikely he had someone there to do it for him. Was this how he passed his time alone when he wasn’t working? 

So many questions, when would he have the time to ask them all? 

Did they have forever for him to learn every inch of Aro’s body and mind or was this the only opportunity and he wasting it in silence all the while the metaphorical hourglass counted down his time?

What happened when the last grain of sand dropped? 

He was being fatalistic. 

“I thought about it a thousand times. In the dead of night staring at the ceiling, every waking moment too, I thought of what I would say to you if I ever saw you again,” Aro began suddenly, though while he spoke to Garrett his gaze was focused on the lake. “Some of it was grand and some of it was awful. I think sometimes I wanted to hurt you because it might somehow balance out how you hurt me but I was the one that let you go, how is it fair I punish you for my decisions?” Aro’s glass was empty now and Garrett watched as he set it down on the table, neither of them took a seat. 

“I didn’t want to leave, I _told_ you that, Aro.” The words slipped out without thinking and Aro winced at the sound of them. “I wanted to stay here with you, it was all I wanted but you told me to go and I could never go against your wishes.” But whatever had happened after he left was a blur all he felt was hurt and hopelessness and then he was on the beach naked as the day he was born with legs and no idea how it happened.

“Yes, I remember. I tortured myself with those words for days.” 

“Then why did you make me leave?”

“It wasn’t fair for you to be stuck here with someone who couldn’t help you or take care of you in a way that would be respectful… dignified.” 

“Should I have stayed away?” Quiet, so quiet were the words as he uttered them. Not quite a whisper but it was something. “Should I have stayed away, Aro?” He asked again, instead of waiting for an answer he set his drink down and moved to Aro’s side, his hand snaking around the man’s waist and Aro twisted to look up at him. 

With all the frustration brewing under his skin, it was hard to keep his mind clear, the heat of the alcohol was still on his tongue and in his throat- the buzz in his blood, his brain and his ears, he was losing himself as he felt Aro press against him as one of his hands gripped his shirt. 

“Did you miss me, Aro?” The words were tight now as something inside him coiled up like a spring, something poised to pounce. “Do you want me here?” There was no control now between both of them as their lips met for a second time that day. There was a moan from Aro, it was fraught with need and a sound akin to pain but he did not pull away and instead he allowed Garrett to slide his tongue past soft lips, the taste of brandy still apparent on them, to deepen the kiss. 

_Yes, yes, yes._

The longing was bittersweet and Garrett would devour every last bit of it until Aro was as enraptured as he was.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so the date continues. 
> 
> It becomes apparent Aro was very much unprepared and Garrett is entirely out of his depth. 
> 
> But it isn't... bad.

Gods, his heart pounded so hard Aro feared it might beat right out of his chest. It hurt, it hurt even with the softness of Garrett’s lips paired with the tight embrace the feelings that shifted and rolled within him could not be contained. 

Willingly he broke the kiss and with his palms flat against Garrett’s chest he pushed the man away. There wasn’t enough strength behind it for the action to do much other than force Garrett back half a step.

“This is… all  _ very _ overwhelming and I need a moment.” Aro tried to still the trembling in his voice. It was too much too fast and while he knew he should have been elated to have him standing before him with the light summer breeze ruffling his hair, he couldn’t bring himself to feel the joy. 

He had been prepared to move on, had started to think that maybe it was better that Garrett had vanished into the sea again at his behest. The stranger at the door was supposed to be a true stranger with their paths never having crossed until he stepped across the threshold of his home and introduced himself. 

It wasn’t disappointment that Aro felt. When allowing his emotions to dictate his actions he had done what he assumed any person who had ever loved anyone would do, he had embraced the one who held his heart and for a split second wondered if he truly ever had to let go again. 

Bewilderment and a frenzied panic clattered over his bones sinking deep into the tissue of his very being and in a bid to hide he turned away from Garrett, and with shaking hands now balled into loose fists he pressed them against his closed eyes until he saw stars and until he could control the fountain of uncertainty that welled up inside him. It threatened to pour from his mouth just as fresh spring water would from an aquifer. 

There was so much he wanted to ask him, so much he needed to know, and by the Gods!- he’d wring Carlisle’s neck the next time he saw him. The intentions were clear and he knew his friend had not hidden Garrett’s return from him to spite him in any way but some clear warning in advance would have changed so much. 

Instead, he was left to deal with the onslaught of emotions on his own all the while his mind is scrambling to piece together coherent questions that Garrett might answer. But to no avail, he can’t think of a single thing to say to end the tension that he had created but suddenly a hand is gently placed on his shoulder and he is turned to face Garrett once again.

“I’m sorry, Aro. I came with the thought in my mind that we might pick up where we left off and didn’t think that enough time had passed that perhaps you didn’t want to see me again.” Something in Garrett had changed and Aro couldn’t ignore how stable he appeared standing before him with an expression of great sorrow yet total understanding. 

“You asked me to leave for a reason, and I did as you asked and left. I had intended to stay away from you and not come back even if that hurt too much to put into words, and now I am standing here as if I have any right to.” He offered a sad smile and as he opened his mouth to speak again Aro only caught a glimpse of perfect white teeth squared off where there should have been something far more dangerous. 

What had he given away so that he could be standing there speaking to him the way he was? What part of him had he offered up in exchange for the life he now had to get used to and could he go back if he decided the solid ground was not for him? 

“I’m not angry that you’re here.” The words came out before he had time to reconsider but it had been what Garrett needed to hear because he visibly relaxed and Aro felt shame at not having realised that Garrett was just as overwhelmed as he was. 

Their reunion should never have happened the way it had. 

“Can we start again?” Garrett asked, he had long since abandoned his drink and was shifting from one foot to the other clearly not used to standing for any amount of time. “Can we be strangers, I’ll start-” He stopped speaking looking crestfallen as Aro shook his head. 

Yes, he was trying, Garrett didn’t want to let this go, didn’t them to be nothing when they could have been something. Something intense and beautiful, a spark in the dark that had roared to life without any hesitation.

“I can’t start again, Garrett, too much has passed between us. Do you want to brush all of that away as if it meant nothing… did it mean nothing?” He had to know and felt no regret in asking the man such a question. They were both vulnerable and exposed there wasn’t any need to hide these questions with softness. 

There was an understanding in Garrett’s eyes and strangely he smiled a bright and joyous grin. It lit up his face and further confused Aro of the man’s age as youth became apparent with his smooth skin and spirited laugh that bubbled forth clear and enchanting. He was so easily drawn in by everything Garrett had been and everything he now was and to throw that away again would be foolish.

“You are the first person I have ever loved, loved you despite everything that said I shouldn’t.” 

“What changed?”

“Nothing, I still love you,” Aro paused a moment, he didn’t know what he wanted to say but it felt wrong to leave them both in silence. His life had been drenched in silence from a young age, it was submission and expectation. 

A silent home was supposedly a good home but Aro hadn’t ever understood why and had never asked his father for a reason. He knew he wouldn’t receive an answer if he asked. 

“How did you end up this way?” The heaviness of the situation was lifted when he gestured to Garrett’s entire being. “I think I recall you telling me at one point you were part human but you didn’t tell me much else.” 

“I don’t know much more than that.” Came the soft reply as Garrett still shifted from one foot to another. Standing for what likely felt like hours would leave Garrett aching and so Aro gestures for them to sit at the table behind them. 

The relief on his face told Aro much and he offered a silent apology by reaching over the table and taking one of Garrett’s hands in his briefly. As he withdrew his hand Garrett refused to let go and so they remained like that before the conversation resumed. 

“I can’t remember much after leaving you if I’m honest. Maybe one day it will come back to me but for now, there is nothing between the moment I left the lake to the moment Charlie found me washed up on the same beach you found me on only this time with legs.” It bothered him, he could see it in his eyes that losing that time bothered him that whatever was missing felt important no matter how small it might have been. 

“How long were you with the Swan family?” Charlie was a pleasant man, straight forward, wildly inelegant but honest to a fault. A truly trusted member of the community and well-liked all around. It was not surprising he had taken Garrett in without a second's worth of hesitation. 

“A couple of weeks, maybe more?” It was said with a shrug and Aro didn’t press for more details. “It felt like a long time, enough to learn the basics of everything it is to be a human but I was learning from a 12-year-old girl and a man that could quote the law from memory so I’m not sure what good I’ll be fully in social situations.” They share a laugh, it felt good after the emotional turmoil, far easier to process this than weeks worth of hurt and uncertainty. 

“Well, you’re doing just fine right now, isn’t that something?” The softness in his own voice would have been embarrassing if it had been directed at anyone other than Garrett, but he figured that being gentle with the one he adored would be all right. 

“You have more eloquence, I think. Even when you’re angry or upset you’re… not reserved but you don’t really let go.” An astute observation from Garrett and it startled Aro into silence momentarily, and whatever had been on his lips at that moment dissolved and he let out a laugh though it was restrained as he always was with others. 

“Hm, I have always been this way. For as long as I can remember. What does it feel like to let go?” 

“You ask me as if I really know the answer to that.” His response was lightning fast and it earned another laugh from Aro so surprised was he to hear Garrett speak so confidently, almost the way he was when they had first met. 

That self-assured creature trying to bait him into an argument trying to have him lose his cool. 

Beguiling from the beginning, an unknown that Aro hadn’t been able to truly let go off even when forced to physically leave the Volturi grounds. 

“Is it any wonder that I would assume you would?” 

“There isn’t that much freedom under the surface of the water.”

“Even if you can go anywhere you wish?”

“I couldn’t go everywhere- I wasn’t free but that doesn’t matter, not right now anyway.” As Garrett spoke he eyed his abandoned drink and Aro nudged it towards him with his free hand. 

They needed a subject change but everything Aro wanted to talk about was just too heavy, there wasn’t much small talk in his repertoire, nothing past the usual ‘How are you?’ that he’d toss out into the air as he passed someone in town that he knew. 

Other than that his conversation skills, he found, were quite lacking. What did one talk about with the person that turned their world upside down? 

“It’s odd to see you so… dry.” Aro ventured but when Garrett merely offered him confusion he felt the flush of embarrassment crawl up his neck and he mumbled that it didn’t matter. 

“Oh right, because I’m not in the water. Yes, I suppose it would be odd to see me like this.” Gods it was awkward, but what had Aro even expected when they had barely gotten to truly know each other before he sent Garrett on his way? 

The horrible notion that perhaps he didn’t truly love Garrett gripped at his stomach and ice flooded his veins. It did seem that too much had happened too fast and that perhaps they were just two lonely individuals that needed company.

Had he fostered feelings for Garrett because he had been so isolated or was there something about him that Aro liked… even adored? 

“Are you all right?” Garrett breaks the silence and Aro jumps at the sudden sound of his voice. “Would it better if I came back another time?” 

No, no it would not. Regardless of how much time they spent together Aro still had to sift through his feelings to come to some sort of resolution. How he felt about Garrett and what he wanted from the man, they were not small questions he could just blithely respond to in a matter of minutes. 

“Charlie said he would collect me later, but I am sure he would come now if I asked.” 

“I don’t know what I want, Garrett. I’m sorry this was so unexpected to have you back here, I truly wasn’t prepared.” He watched as Garrett gave a nod and he looked as though he understood perfectly well.

If his feelings had been hurt he did well not to show it. 

“I can leave, but will I be welcome to come by tomorrow?” How timid he sounded now, or it might have just how he sounded when being polite- they hadn’t started that way and it felt disingenuous even if Garrett hadn’t meant for it to come across that way. 

“You are always welcome in my home, please, come by tomorrow.” His hand was released from Garrett’s and they both stood from the table in silence, knowing full well what had happened was beyond awkward. Just when Aro was beginning to think things were getting better his own mind would betray him and doubt would wriggle its way into each thought. 

“I’ll call Charlie for you.”


End file.
